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THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


LOST  IN   NICARAGUA 


TRAVEL-ADVENTURE   SERIES. 


IN  WILD  AFRICA.  Adventures  of  Two  Boys  in 
the  Sahara  Desert.  By  Thomas  \V.  Knox.  325 
pages.    With  five  Illustrations  by  II.  Burgess.    $1.50. 

THE  LAND  OF  THE  KANGAROO.  Adventures 
of  Two  Boys  in  the  Great  Island  Continent.  By 
Colonel  Thomas  \V.  Knox.  31S  pages.  Illustrated 
by  II.  Burgess.     $1.50. 

OVER  THE  ANDES  ;  or.  Our  Boys  in  New  South 
America.  By  Hezekiah  Butterworth.  370  pages. 
With  five  Illustrations  by  Henry  Sandham.     $1.50. 

LOST  IN  NICARAGUA ;  or.  Among  Coffee  Farms 
and  Banana  Lands,  in  the  Countries  of  the 
Great  Canal.  By  Hezekiah  Butterworth.  296 
pages.    With  five  Illustrations  by  H.  Burgess.    $1.50. 


r  •  a  ■ 


LOST  IN  NICARAGUA 


AMONG   COFFEE    FARMS  AND  BANANA 

LANDS,   IN  THE  COUNTRIES  OF 

THE  GREAT  CANAL 


BY 


HEZEKIAH    BUTTKRWORTH 

AUTHOR   OF   "OVER   THE   ANDES,''    ETC. 

ILLUSTRATED   BY 
HENRY    SANDHAM 


BOSTON    AND   CHICAGO 
W.    A.    WILDE    &   COMPANY 


Copyright,  1898, 
By  W.  A.  Wii.uk  &  Company. 

All  rights  reserved. 


LOST    IX    NICARAGUA. 


Jfi* 


PREFACE. 


"  Lost  in  Nicaragua  "  is  a  companion  book  to  "  Over  the 
Andes,"  and  is  designed  to  illustrate  the  historical  progress 
and  industrial  opportunities  of  Central  America,  the  pros- 
pective land  of  the  great  international  highway  to  the  East. 
Here  is  to  be  the  gate  of  the  Pacific,  where  a  great  city  of 
the  future  must  arise,  and  become  the  port  of  the  coffee, 
sugar,  banana,  and  tropical  fruit  plantations. 

In  1898  the  writer  went  to  Costa  Rica,  and  on  his  way  met 
a  railroad  manager,  who,  on  his  explorations  for  a  tropical 
railroad,  fell  into  a  cavern  covered  with  reeds  and  was  im- 
prisoned there.  This  explorer's  experience  in  a  neighboring 
country  suggested  the  story  of  Leigh  Frobisher's  adventure 
in  the  underground  idol  cave  of  Nicaragua. 

The  writer  met  at  Port  Limon  a  young  German  who  had 
built  up  a  coffee  and  banana  plantation  in  Costa  Rica,  which 
he  cultivated  for  the  purpose  of  the  industrial  education  of 
the  native  Indians.  His  work  had  received  the  approval  of 
the  government,  and  it  furnishes  a  model  tor  like  enterprises 
of  Christian  philanthropy.  This  incident,  and  like  incidents, 
i/ave  rise  to  the  character  ot   Hazel. 


71 8166 


6  PREFACE. 

The  writer  has  used  his  old  method  in  the  "  Zigzag " 
books  of  interpolating  stories  within  a  connected  narrative. 
These  stories  are  pictures  of  the  life  of  the  country. 

South  America  is  being  Europeanized,  the  Argentine 
Republic  is  producing  a  new  Italy,  and  a  new  Latin  race 
seems  to  be  forming  under  the  Andes.  Central  America  is 
becoming  more  American,  and  a  great  industrial  opportunity 
is  opening  there.  Young  Americans  and  Germans  are  mak- 
ing coffee  and  tropical  fruit  plantations  in  all  parts  of  the 
country,  and  especially  in  Costa  Rica,  in  which  the  San  Jose 
and  Cartago  region  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  parts  of  the 
earth. 

The  book,  like  "  Over  the  Andes,"  is  written  in  the  spirit 
and  interests  of  Christian  education,  for  influence,  and  for 
illustration  of  the  best  and  most  progressive  enterprises  of 
life.  With  little  of  the  spirit  of  authorship,  the  writer  has 
sought  in  "  Over  the  Andes  "  and  "  Lost  in  Nicaragua  "  to 
produce  two  books  that  will  correctly  picture  the  progress  of 
South  and  Central  America  in  such  a  way  as  to  interest  the 
best  thought  in  it,  and  to  help  life. 

We  have  used  the  quetzal,  the  paradise  trogon,  the  sacred 
bird  of  the  ancient  races,  as  the  object  of  the  search  of  one 
of  our  American  travellers,  and  have  related  the  St.  Thomas 
legend  in  connection  with  Quetzalcoatl,  and  the  forest  won- 
ders ot  feathers  of  emerald,  ruby,  and  pearl.  The  myth  is 
one  of  the  most  pleasing  of  all  the  parables  of  the  Western 
world.  St.  Thomas,  the  Doubter,  probably  never  visited 
India,  or  founded  the  faith  of  the  Xestorians  of  Persia,  and 


PREFACE.  7 

he  certainly  could  never  have  appeared  as  Quetzalcoatl 
in  Yucatan  and  Guatemala.  But  the  legend,  as  a  legend,  is 
one  of  the  most  stimulating  in  prehistoric  research ;  for  the 
appearance  of  the  cross  in  the  ruins  of  Palenque  seems 
to  be  a  Christian  link  between  the  Eastern  and  Western 
worlds. 

Of  the  quetzal,  the  sacred  bird  of  these  mysteries,  and  the 
most  beautiful  of  all  the  birds  of  the  world,  Mr.  Stephens, 
the  explorer  of  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Central  American 
cities,  says,  in  speaking  of  a  convent  where  he  was  enter- 
tained :  "  On  a  shelf  over  the  bed  were  two  stuffed  quezalcs, 
the  royal  bird  of  Quiche,  the  most  beautiful  that  flies,  so 
proud  of  its  tail  that  it  builds  its  nest  with  two  openings,  to 
pass  in  and  out  without  turning,  and  whose  plumes  were  not 
permitted  to  be  used  except  by  the  royal  family."  In 
making  the  search  for  this  bird,  the  object  of  one  of  the 
young  travellers  of  our  narrative,  we  are  able  to  introduce  in 
story  form  some  pictures  of  legendary  history. 

We  have  written  into  our  narrative  a  brief  history  of  the 
efforts  to  secure  an  interoceanic  canal,  and  have  endeavored 
to  picture  the  route  through  which  the  canal  is  expected  to 
pass.  It  would  seem  that  in  Nicaragua  the  two  oceans  are 
to  be  wedded. 

We  stand  on  the  threshold  of  new  opportunities,  and  these 
open  countries  await  the  progress  of  the  world.  The  empty 
lands  of  the  Southern  Cross  and  the  Republics  of  the  Sun 
are  on  their  way  to  great  events  in  the  future,  and  the  time 
has  come  for  our  young  people  to   know  more  about  them. 


8  PREFACE. 

The  star  of  prosperity  leads  towards  the  south,  and  to  illus- 
trate the  educational  part  of  this  progress,  in  a  popular  way, 
is  the  aim  and  purpose  of  the  two  books  of  narratives  of 
travel  with  interpolated  stories. 

28  Worcester  Street,  Boston. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER 

I.     The  Quetzal  —  The  Golden  Ace  of   Quetzalcoatl 
—  The    St.  Thomas    Legend  and  the  Mysterious 
Cross  —  The  Story  of  Nicaragua,  the  Chief 
II.     Tin-:  Young  German  Coffee  Planter  . 

III.  Bucking  against  the  Climate       .... 

IV.  Hazel  —  A  Story  of  the  Blood  Snake 

V.     A  Very  Odd  Story  —  Tin-:  Washington  of  Centrai 
America       ........ 

VI.     Tin'.  Third  America:    How  to   reach    it   from    New 
York     ......... 

VII.     Costa  Rica:  -Thi-:  Switzerland  of  the  Tropics' 
VIII.     Coffee  Land    ........ 

IX.     Tin;  Young  Coffee  Planter  at  Home —  Irazu 

X.     Arlla 

XL     Hazel's  School  —  His  Methods   .... 
XII.     A   Party  for  the  Forests     ..... 
XIII.     The  Wonders  of  the  Forest  regin 
XIY.     An  Army  of  Pigs —  Bitten  i-.y  a  Jigger 
XV.     The  Wounded  Monkey  .  ... 

XVI.     Tin:    Royal    Family    of    Trogons        Leigh    finds    a 
Tkogon    ReSI'LENDENS  .... 

<) 


>3 
40 
46 

52 

63 

/i 
84 

90 
100 
108 

"3 

127 

'.V 
'3* 
142 

146 


IO 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 

XXI  If. 

XXIV. 

XXV 

XXVI. 

XXVII. 

XXVIII. 

XXIX. 

XXX. 

XXXI. 

XXXII 

XXXIII. 

XXXIV. 

XXXV. 

XXXVI. 

XXX  VII. 

XXXVIII. 

XXXIX. 


The  Jaguar  Hunt 

The  Lost  Indian  Babies  ok  Rio  Fkio  —  Zapatera 

The  Mediterranean  of  the  West 

The    Nicaragua    Canal  —  Its     Promise    of    the 
Future    

The  Landing  at  Greytown  —  A  New  Industry 
Tin-:  Planting  of  Rubber  Groves 

Lost     ........ 

In  an  Idol  Cave         

The  Tiger  Cat 

Apula  ....... 

The  Rubber  Hunters 

The  Wild  Palm  Forest  and  the  Alligator  Bird 

Faithful     ....... 

Found  ....... 

Parted         . 

Guatemala,  the  Land  of  the  Quetzal 

The  Trick  .Mule  —  Earthquake  Land  . 

The    Mystery    of    Palenque    and   the   Unknown- 
Cities      . 

A  Philosophical  Monkey 

A  Guatemala  Coffee  Plantation 

Pequena  Paris:  A  City  of  Surprise 

'•No  Hay"  and  "No   Si:" 

Cohan,  the  City  of  the  Quetzal  . 

The  Royal  Bird 


PACK 

153 

160 

170 
177 

183 

187 

'94 
198 
208 
213 
216 

229 
233 

237 
242 

247 
258 
262 
267 
275 
280 
289 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


"  The  people  met  them  with  rejoicing,  dancing,  and  garlands 

of  flowers  "     .  .  .  .  .  .         Frontispiece       39 

"  '  I  glanced  at  the  demon-like  looking  creature  as  I  held  him 

by  his  wing  '  "  ........       83 

"  There  seemed  to   be  from   fifty  to  a  hundred  pigs,  turning 

hither  and  thither  "  .         .  .  .  .  .  .136 

'•  Leigh  leaped  into  one  of  the  mahogany  dugout  boats  "  .191 

"  The  woman  went  out  and  stood  where   Leigh  had  slept,  and 

pointed  upward  "     .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .226 


LOST  IN   NICARAGUA. 


sXKc 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE  QUETZAL.  THE  GOLDEN  ACE  OF  QUETZALCOATL.  THE 
ST.  THOMAS  LEGEND  AND  THE  MYSTERIOUS  CROSS.  THE 
STORY    OF    NICARAGUA,    THE    CHIEF. 

THE  quetzal,  or  quesal,  the  paradise  trogon  (Caluras 
rcsplcndcns),  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  the  birds  in 
the  Western  world.  To  witness  the  flight  of  one  of  these 
birds  in  the  sun  through  a  Nicaraguan  or  Guatemalan  forest 
is  an  event  to  an  ornithologist  from  England  or  North 
America.  The  paradise  trogons  that  we  see  in  collections 
give  but  a  suggestion  of  the  marvellous  splendor  of  the  live 
bird  as  it  drifts  through  the  tropical  forests,  especially  when 
its  flight  is  in  a  rift  of  sunlight,  amid  the  long,  glimmering 
shadows. 

The  quetzal  was  the  sacred  bird  of  the  temples  of  Central 
American  Andes,  and  is  the  national  emblem  of  Guatemala, 
in  memory  of  the  ancient  nations  and  rites  of  a  vanished  em- 
pire that  held  the  gems  of  nature  as  among  the  gifts  of 
its  gods. 

The  bird  in  several  species  is  found  in  the   forests  of  Cen- 

>3 


14  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

tral  America.  It  is  not  rare  in  the  forests  or  the  table-lands; 
but  few,  except  native  Americans,  have  ever  seen  it  in  its  own 
haunts  or  witnessed  the  vision  of  the  splendor  of  its  flight. 

Why  —  when  this  royal  and  sacred  bird,  the  bird  of  ca- 
ciques and  of  one  of  the  republics  of  the  third  America,  is 
the  most  beautiful  of  all  the  birds  of  paradise  on  our  own 
continent  ? 

The  bird  lives  in  mountain  forests,  at  a  height  of  some 
three  or  five  thousand  feet,  and  not  many  white  travellers  go 
there. 

It  is  a  lazy  bird.  It  sits  in  bowers  of  bloom  among  the 
orchids  and  odorous  plants,  and  seems  to  be  dreaming. 

Says  a  lover  of  birds  of  rare  plumage  :  "  It  is  too  lazy  to 
turn  its  head  ;  it  seems  to  be  thinking,  thinking,  but  of  what 
it  is  thinking  no  man  knows.  I  would  give  many  pesos  to 
know  what  these  superb  trogons  are  always  thinking  about." 

The  bird  has  a  fussy  look  about  the  head,  as  though  its 
meditations  had  not  been  congenial.  It  has  the  appearance 
of  a  pessimist  with  all  of  its  optimist  plumes.  He  is  a  kind 
of  rainbow  in  the  cloud. 

He  wears  a  mantle  of  golden  green,  a  living  mantle  with 
the  lustre  of  gems.  Under  this  mantle  burns  a  waist  of 
carmine  red.  His  eye  is  brown,  his  beak  yellow,  and  from 
his  little  body  sweeps  a  tail  like  a  trail  of  a  royal  creature  of 
nature,  white  and  green.  The  feathers  of  this  brilliant  tail  are 
usually  more  than  two  feet  long.  One  wonders  that  they  can 
ever  be  borne  in  the  air  by  this  animated  beauty  of  the  silent 
forest. 

He  seems  not  to  talk  much,  with  all  of  his  thinking,  but 
what  he  says  is  like  the  voice  of  the  temple  of  Memnon.      He 


THE    QUETZAL.  I  5 

speaks  low,  lovingly,  and  melodiously.  Then  his  voice  swells 
and  drifts  on  the  warm,  fragrant  air  of  his  lazy  habitudes. 
He  is  a  bird  of  mystery. 

The  royal  bird  lives  on  fruit,  and  he  does  not  have  to  hunt 
for  it  in  the  regions  of  the  plantains  and  palms.  He  has  but  to 
sit  in  the  cool  shadow  of  a  tree  and  eat,  and  make  love,  and 
pipe,  and  think.  He  has  been  thinking  for  thousands  of  years  ; 
he  was  thinking  when  Columbus  came,  and  he  is  thinking  yet. 
When  he  is  tamed  he  falls  in  love  with  his  keeper.  But  he 
does  not  thrive  in  captivity  ;  if  you  handle  him,  he  dies. 

Our  friends  the  Frobishers,  from  Milton,  Mass.,  whose 
travels  in  South  America  we  pictured  in  "  Over  the  Andes," 
had  no  sooner  arrived  at  Port  Limon  than  they  began  to  in- 
quire at  the  consulate  in  regard  to  the  wonderful  bird  of  the 
Nicaraguan,  Honduran,  and  Guatemalan  forests.  Captain 
Frobisher  and  his  two  nephews  had  secured  some  strange  birds 
and  rare  plants  in  South  America ;  they  wished  to  add  a  living 
quetzal  to  their  collection,  and  to  see  the  bird  in  its  native 
woods. 

"  I  can  secure  one  of  the  birds  for  you,"  said  the  Consul. 
"The  Indian  women  have  them  for  sale  in  Central  American 
towns." 

"  I  am  going  to  Guatemala,"  said  Captain  Frobisher.  "  Our 
plan  is  to  visit  Costa  Rica's  beautiful  capital,  San  Jose,  to  go 
to  Greytown  and  Hluefields,  and  thence  to  Livingston  in  Gua- 
temala and  to  Halise  in  Honduras.  We  hope  to  make  an 
excursion  into  Lake  Nicaragua  and  to  see  the  ancient  ruins 
in  the  lake,  go  to  Granada,  the  old  town  of  ships  in  the  days 
of  Spain,  and  to  see  the  route  of  the  proposed  Nicaraguan 
Canal.      I    look   upon  this  canal  as  certain  to  be  built,  and  to 


l6  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

become  the  gateway  of  the  Pacific, — the  new  water  high- 
way of  the  world.  We  are  travelling  in  part  for  pleasure, 
but  largely  for  education,  to  see  the  coffee  plantations  of 
Central  America,  the  new  fruit  industries  of  Nicaragua, 
Honduras,  and  Guatemala.  We  think  that  great  opportuni- 
ties are  here  and  a  great  future  ;  but  one  of  my  nephews  has 
a  fancy  for  birds,  and  we  wish  to  see  the  home  of  a  moun- 
tain quetzal,  the  native  bird  of  paradise,  and  to  secure  one  for 
our  own  collection  of  birds,  and  more  than  one  live  bird,  if 
possible,  for  a  museum  from  which  we  have  received  letters." 

"  You  will  not  find  it  difficult  to  carry  out  your  whole  plan. 
It  seems  to  me  a  very  interesting  one.  Our  countrymen  fail 
to  see  how  great  is  the  industrial  opportunity  in  this  country 
of  the  paradise  bird." 

"  My  nephew  Alonzo  is  more  interested  in  coffee-growing 
and  in  the  banana  trade  than  in  ornithology ;  but  his  brother 
and  I  have  a  great  love  of  what  is  wonderful  in  nature.  The 
trogon  is  among  birds  what  the  night-blooming  cereus  is  among 
plants,  and  we  wish  to  see  it  in  its  native  forests.  Have  I 
made  our  purpose  of  travel  clear  to  you  ?  " 

"  Very  clear.  I  have  friends  who  know  the  whole  country 
well ;  some  of  them  are  connected  with  the  new  lines  of 
steamers  to  these  parts  ;   I  will  introduce  you  to  them." 

"  Thank  you,  Consul.  There  is  one  man  that  always  has 
a  vision  in  his  mind,  a  warm  heart,  and  a  ready  hand.  That 
man  is  the  Consul,  and  I  see  that  you  are  a  true  representa- 
tive of  the  liberal  men  whom  the  traveller  most  wishes  to 
know."' 

Port  Limon  exists  yet  only  in  outline.  It  was  a  tropical 
swamp   only  a  few  years   ago.      It  now  has  several  hotels,  a 


THE    QUETZAL.  \J 

Protestant  and  a  Catholic  church,  a  public  garden  in  which 
are  beautiful  orchids  and  some  wonderful  plants,  a  fine  mar- 
ket-place, and  evidences  of  progress  on  every  hand.  It  is  a 
very  unhealthy  place,  although  it  lies  between  the  mountains 
and  the  foaming  sea.  \\ *hy  it  should  be  so,  with  the  purple 
and  green  Caribbean  Sea  breaking  against  the  new  sea- 
wall and  the  palm-shaded  mountains  towering  above  it,  we 
cannot  see.  But  so  it  is.  The  stranger  should  avoid  the  hot 
sun  and  the  frequent  rains  here;  he  should  not  get  wet  and 
then  expose  himself  to  the  sun.  lie  will  look  upon  the  place  as 
one  of  nature's  paradises  when  he  lands,  and  will  be  tempted 
to  rush  into  the  natural  parks  of  wonderful  verdure.  Let 
him  sit  down  under  the  cocoanut  palms  around  his  hotel  at 
first,  and  there  ask  some  resident  how  many  times  he  has  had 
the  fever. 

This  question  Captain  Frobisher  asked  of  Mr.  Sobey,  the 
Baptist  minister  in  the  place,  who  had  founded  and  helped 
to  build  up  a  number  of  churches  in  this  republic  of  the  future. 

"Some  twenty  times,"  said  the  good  man,  before  whose 
faith  and  work  malaria  has  been  put  to  flight.  "  And  the 
black  vomit  twice,"  he  added.  "  It  is  this  way  :  if  a  man  lead 
a  temperate  life  and  has  the  fever,  the  chances  are  ninety- 
nine  to  one  that  he  will  recover;  but  if  he  be  dissipated  or 
has  lowered  his  vitality  by  excesses,  his  hope  ol  recovery 
will  not  be  so  great,"  or  words  to  this  effect.  Among  men  ol 
right  habits,  the  fever  is  little  more  dreaded  than  :i  eokl  in 
the  North. 

Soldiers,  sailors,  and  fortune  seekers  come  here,  tall  sick, 
and  some  of  them  die;  but  those  who  obevthe  laws  ol  health, 
like  those  who   follow  the  ri<Tit  laws  of  all  conditions  of    lite, 


1 8  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

overcome  the  clangers  of  the  climate.  Mr.  Sobey,  with  all  of 
his  levers,  is  a  very  healthy-looking  man. 

Many  advices  are  given  here  as  to  how  to  avoid  the  malaria. 

'•  Drink  lime  water,  or  let  the  colored  boys  bring  you  the 
water  of  the  cocoanuts  daily,  cutting  off  the  top  of  the  cocoa- 
nuts  with  his  machete,  and  pouring  it  out  before  you, — -the 
water  that  grows,  as  it  were,  in  the  buckets  on  the  trees. 
Shun  spirits,  use  much  coffee ;  never  go  out  into  the  sun 
without  an  umbrella,  and  not  at  all  if  possible;  avoid  getting 
wet ;  never  let  wet  clothes  dry  on  you.  Do  not  get  excited. 
Live  where  the  winds  blow  upon  the  coast."  These  counsels 
and  many  others  will  be  heard  here,  and  some  of  them  will 
not  be  approved  by  all  people.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  those 
who  are  temperate  in  all  things  escape,  as  a  rule,  the  greater 
dangers  of  malarial  fever. 

It  is  delightful  to  sit  on  the  sea-wall  in  the  cool  of  the  day 
in  the  incoming  breeze  from  the  sea.  The  sun  goes  down, 
red  and  flaming,  behind  the  dark  shadows  of  the  cocoanut 
palms  on  the  hills  ;  then  the  silence  of  the  stars  comes  over 
the  green  land  and  purple  sea.  The  surf  rises  and  foams, 
and  beats  against  the  sea-wall  incessantly  ;  ships  pass,  and 
sails  careen  by.  The  colored  people  come  down  the  prome- 
nade to  share  the  cool,  and  but  for  the  danger  of  malaria 
Port  Limon  would  be  one  of  the  lovely  places  of  the  world. 
The  rapid  building  here  will  probably  cause  the  malaria  to 
disappear.  The  place  is  destined  to  grow  with  the  new  de- 
velopment of  Costa  Rica,  which  promises  to  be  one  of  the 
centres  of  great  progress  in  the  future  of  the  Western  world. 
The  time  of  malaria  will  then  be  likely  to  be  only  a  matter  of 
memory. 


THE  QUETZAL.  19 

THE  GOLDEN  AGE  OF  QUETZALCOATL. 

Who  was  Quetzalcoatl,  or  Quetzalcohuatl  (pronounced 
Ket-zal-co-wat-tle)  ? 

He  was  the  king  of  the  Toltecs,  the  teacher  of  truth,  who 
brought  the  Golden  Age  to  Mexico,  and  whose  disciples  car- 
ried the  Golden  Age  to  Central  America.  His  name  in  some 
form  is  impressed  upon  many  ancient  cities  and  monuments. 
Thus  we  have  Quetzalapan,  Quetzalapec,  and  Ouetzaltenango. 
He  was  known  as  the  Feathered  Snake,  the  serpent  here 
meaning  not  evil  but  wisdom.  The  quetzal,  the  bird  of  the 
sun,  has  the  same  suggestion. 

Whence  came  the  king  of  the  Toltecs?  He  appeared  one 
day  on  the  shores  of  Panuco ;  he  was  a  messenger  from  the 
Hast;  the  people  received  him  as  a  god. 

He  taught  the  people  the  arts  of  peace;  that  violence  and 
bloodshed  and  war  were  wrong;  that  they  should  live  in  Jove 
and  cultivate  the  earth. 

Under  this  teaching,  according  to  the  legend,  a  Golden 
Age  came.  The  corn  grew  so  large  that  it  required  the 
strength  oi  a  man  to  carry  away  a  single  ear  from  the  field. 
The  cotton  grew  in  many  colors.  The  trees  rejoiced  in  an 
abundant  fruitage.      The  birds  sung  entrancing!)'. 

He  disappeared  after  a  reign  of  twenty  years,  going  away 
as  mysteriously  as  he  had  appeared.  The  people  deified  him. 
A  part  of  his  followers  went  to  Central  America  and  founded 
Tollan  in  Chiapos.  The  quetzal  became  an  emblem  ot  the 
Toltecan  king  of  the  Golden  Age. 

There  is  a  very  beautiful  legend  associated  with  the  bird 
that  reflects  the  spirit  of  the  Golden  Age. 


20  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Iii  that  age  nothing  could  be  killed.  But  the  plumes  of 
the  quetzal  were  the  symbol  of  royalty.  Only  the  kings  were 
allowed  to  use  them,  and  they  must  not  kill  the  bird. 

The  sacred  law  ran  :  that  they  might  capture  the  bird,  mer- 
cifully remove  its  long  plumes,  and  give  it  freedom,  but  that 
this  must  be  done  by  consecrated  hands. 

Whatever  truth  there  may  be  in  these  legends,  this  last 
provision  is  worthy  of  a  people  of  any  golden  age ;  for  truth 
is  truth,  and  mercy  is  mercy,  and  kindness  is  kindness  wher- 
ever they  may  be  found. 

The  law  that  we  find  in  this  legend  has  a  very  Oriental 
spirit,  and  one  almost  wonders  if  some  St.  Thomas,  not  the 
Doubter,  did  not  come  to  America  from  Judea  and  teach  the 
Toltecs  these  beneficent  things,  or  if  some  missionary  influ- 
ence that  was  begun  in  St.  Thomas,  who  was  supposed  to  be 
born  in  Antioch  and  who  died  in  Odessa,  did  not  go  to  the 
Nestorians  in  Persia,  and  to  Yucatan,  and  Guatemala. 
Fancy  likes  to  question  such  pleasing  suggestions;  but  the 
field  is  one  for  the  poet,  the  artist,  and  for  those  who  study 
the  spirit  of  events  in  symbolisms. 

THE    STRANGE    LEGEND    OF    THE    QUETZAL,    OR    OF    ST.    THOMAS 
AM)    QUETZALCOATL. 

The  quetzal  is  not  only  the  bird  of  history  and  of  beauty  ; 
it  is  associated  with  a  legend  as  curious  as  that  of  the  Wan- 
dering Jew  or  of  the  Crossbill.  Why  no  great  novel  or 
poem  or  painting  has  come  out  of  this  most  wonderful  and 
mysterious  of  all  the  legends  of  the  Western  world  is  remark- 
able.    Impossible  as  is  the  story,  it  is  not  more  so  than  that 


THE    QUETZAL.  21 

of  the  Wandering  Jew,  and  the  imaginary  associations  of  the 
St.  Thomas  legend  are  as  pleasing  as  those  of  the  Wandering 
Jew  are  terrible. 

What  possible  connection  can  there  be  in  the  realm  of 
fancy  between  St.  Thomas,  the  Twin,  who  would  not  believe 
the  resurrection  without  the  visible  witness  of  it,  and  the  bird 
of  Guatemala,  of  Yucatan,  and  Southern  Mexico  ? 

The  known  history  of  St.  Thomas  is  very  brief.  "  Except 
I  see,  I  will  not  believe,"  pictures  the  spirit  of  this  disciple. 
"  Blessed  arc  those  who  have  not  seen  and  yet  have  believed," 
was  a  rebuke  that  will  always  engage  the  mind  of  a  philoso- 
pher. To  accept  things  by  faith  is  the  noblest  exercise  of  the 
soul. 

The  legendary  history  of  St.  Thomas  forms  one  of  the 
most  pleasing  of  all  the  Oriental  creations  of  fancy.  Pontius 
Pilate,  among  such  legends,  is  pictured  as  wandering  to  Lu- 
cerne, Switzerland,  and  as  dying  on  the  black  mountain,  now 
called  Mt.  Pilatus,  where  his  spirit  still  summons  the  clouds 
of  the  storm.  St.  Thomas,  too,  is  represented  as  a  wanderer, 
but  wherever  the  Doubter  went  great  events  followed,  and 
the  legend  takes  him  to  India. 

On  the  Malabar  coast  of  the  Indian  peninsula,  the  Doubter 
is  supposed  to  have  made  his  first  journeys,  and  to  have  re- 
lated the  proof  of  the  resurrection  as  it  had  been  demonstrated 
to  him.  The  "Christians  of  St.  Thomas,"  a  religious  com- 
munity there,  long  under  the  charge  of  bishops  sent  from 
Persia,  attributed  their  origin  to  the  [(reaching  of  St.  Thomas. 
The  Xestorians  continue  this  history. 

The  legend  carries  the  travels  of  St.  Thomas,  the  Doubter, 
as  a  missionary  apostle  into  many  lands.      The  most  remark- 


22  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

able  of  these  journeys  associates  him  with  the  Western  world 
and  with  Guatemala  and  Yucatan. 

But  how  did  fancy  bring  the  feet  of  the  disciple  who  had 
proved  the  resurrection  of  Christ  to  the  lost  cities  of  tropical 
America  ? 

We  see  him  in  the  light  of  the  legend  in  Chinese  Tartary, 
and  going  north  and  crossing  into  the  Western  world  from 
the  once  narrow  channel  where  now  is  Behring  Strait.  We 
may  see  him  wandering  in  summer  down  the  brightening 
coastway  of  the  mountains  and  valleys  of  what  is  now  Cali- 
fornia, and  thence  to  the  ancient  people  of  Mexico  and 
Yucatan. 

Here  he  appears  not  as  St.  Thomas,  but  as  the  god  of  the 
Toltecs,  who  bears  the  name  of  Quetzalcoatl.  He  preaches; 
the  people  hear,  and  golden  temples  rise  in  air  with  the  archi- 
tecture of  Greece  and  Egypt,  and  in  them  is  set  in  exquisite 
sculpture  the  form  of  the  cross. 

This  is  fancy,  but  as  a  mere  legend  it  is  splendid,  worthy 
of  a  poet's  or  an  artist's  work;  full  of  suggestion  and  inspira- 
tion, as  well  as  of  spiritual  beauty,  and  a  charming  parable. 
To  St.  Thomas,  as  the  imaginary  Toltecan  god  Quetzalcoatl, 
the  beautiful  bird  of  the  sun  and  air,  with  white  plumes  and 
his  breast  of  the  sun,  was  sacred. 

Is  there  any  groundwork  for  fancies  like  this?  Is  there  a 
possibility  of  the  Jewish  origin  of  the  extinct  cities,  whose 
monuments  were  full  of  Egyptian  and  Grecian  suggestions, 
that  now  strew  the  forests  of  tropical  Mexico  and  Guate- 
mala ? 

In  a  work  published  in  1854,  entitled  "Peruvian  Antiqui- 
ties,"   by    Mariano    Edward    Rivero    and    John    James   Von 


THE    QUETZAL.  23 

Tschudi,  and  translated  into  English  from  the  original  Span- 
ish by  Francis  L.  Hawks,  LL.U.,  there  is  narrated  some 
curious  events  which  led  up  to  the  Quetzalcoatl  legend. 
From  this  source  we  gather  the  legend  of  Votan  the  Wise 
(the  serpent,  not  in  the  bad  sense). 

"Those  authors  who  attribute  a  Hebrew  origin  to  the 
American  tribes  do  not  agree  among  themselves,  touching  the 
coming  of  the  Israelites  into  the  New  World :  some  think  that 
they  came  directly  from  the  Eastern  hemisphere  to  the  West, 
and  established  themselves  in  the  central  and  southern  parts 
of  this  hemisphere  ;  but  the  majority  are  of  opinion  that  they 
crossed  Persia  and  the  frontiers  of  China,  and  came  in  by  the 
way  of  Behring  Strait. 

"An  ingenious  author  of  our  times  considers  the  Canaanites 
as  the  first  inhabitants  of  America,  who,  proceeding  from 
Mauritania  Tingitana,  landed  somewhere  on  the  shores  of  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  Fifteen  hundred  years  after  the  expulsion 
of  the  Canaanites  by  Joshua,  the  nine  and  a  half  tribes  of 
Israel  passed  over  by  the  way  of  Behring  Strait,  and,  like  the 
Goths  and  Vandals,  assaulted  that  people  (the  Canaanites). 
For  a  second  time,  and  on  another  continent,  the  descendants 
of  Joshua  attacked  the  Canaanites,  whose  origin  they  had 
discovered,  and,  animated  by  their  ancient  hatred,  they  burned 
their  temples  and  destroyed  their  gigantic  towers  and  cities. 

"At  first  view,  the  proofs  produced  by  different  authors  in 
favor  of  an  Israelitish  immigration  may  seem  to  be  conclu- 
sive ;  but  if  closely  examined,  it  will  be  seen  that  this  hypothe- 
sis rests  on  no  solid  Inundation. 

"  But  it  is  time  to  turn  to  another  hypothesis  no  less  inter- 
esting, and  up  to  this  time  never  thoroughly  examined.      The 


24  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

author  of  this  is  Don  Pablo  Felix  de  Cabrera,  of  Guatemala, 
who  labors  ingeniously  and  with  force  to  show  the  relations 
between  the  Phoenicians  and  Americans,  sustaining  his  opin- 
ions by  Mexican  hieroglyphic  inscriptions.  This  brilliant 
hypothesis  merits  a  somewhat  extended  notice. 

"  Don  Francisco  Nunez  de  la  Vega,  bishop  of  Chiapa,  pos- 
sessed, as  he  himself  states  in  his  '  Diocesan  Constitutions,' 
published  at  Rome  in  1702,  a  document  in  which  a  certain 
vovager  or  traveller,  named  Votan,  minutely  described  the 
countries  and  nations  which  he  had  visited.  This  manu- 
script, it  is  found,  was  written  in  the  Tzendal  (Guatemala  or 
Mexican)  language,  and  was  accompanied  by  certain  hiero- 
glvphics  cut  in  stone  ;  by  order  of  the  same  Votan,  the  manu- 
script was  to  be  permanently  deposited  in  a  dark  house  (or 
cavern)  in  the  province  of  Soconusco,  and  there  confided  to 
the  custody  of  a  noble  Indian  lady  and  of  a  number  of 
Indians,  the  places  of  all  of  whom,  as  they  became  vacant, 
were  to  be  continually  resupplied.  Thus  it  continued  pre- 
served for  centuries,  perhaps  for  two  thousand  years,  until 
the  bishop  above  named,  Nunez  de  la  Vega,  in  visiting  the 
province,  obtained  possession  of  the  manuscript  and,  in  the 
year  1690.  commanded  it  to  be  destroyed  in  the  public  square 
of  Iluegatan;  so  that  the  curious  notices  which  it  contained 
would  have  been  completely  lost,  if  there  had  not  existed,  in 
the  hands  of  Don  Ramon  de  Ordonez  y  Aguiar,  in  Ciudad 
Real,  according  to  his  own  statement,  a  copy  made  immedi- 
ately after  the  conquest,  and  which  is  in  part  published  by 
Cabrera. 

"  Petween  two  squares  may  be  read  the  following,  at  the 
title  or  topic  ot   the  manuscript:   'Proof  that  I  am  a  serpent, 


THE    QUETZAL.  25 

the  Wise.'  The  author  says  in  the  text,  that  he  is  the  third 
bearing  the  name  of  Yotan  ;  that  by  nature  or  birth  he  is  a 
serpent,  for  he  is  a  Chivim;  that  he  had  proposed  to  himself 
to  travel  until  he  should  find  the  way  to  the  heavens,  whither 
he  went  to  seek  the  serpents,  his  parents;  that  he  had  gone 
from  Valum  Chivim  to  Valum  Votan,  and  conducted  seven 
families  from  the  last-named  place ;  that  he  had  happily 
passed  to  Europe,  and  had  seen  them  at  Rome  building  a 
magnificent  temple  ;  that  he  had  travelled  by  an  open  path 
seeking  for  his  brothers,  the  serpents,  and  had  made  marks 
on  this  same  path,  and  that  he  had  passed  by  the  houses  of 
the  thirteen  serpents.  In  one  of  his  journeys  he  had  encoun- 
tered other  seven  families  of  the  Tzequil  nation,  whom  he 
recognized  as  serpents,  teaching  them  all  that  was  necessary 
to  prepare  a  suitable  sustenance,  and  that  they  for  their  part 
were  ready  to  acknowledge  him  as  God  himself,  and  elected 
him  their  chief.      Such  is  the  tenor  of  the  document. 

"  In  the  ruins  of  Palenque,  Don  Antonio  del  Rio,  a  captain 
of  artillery,  sent  in  1786  by  the  King  of  Spain  to  examine 
the  remains  of  that  city,  found  various  figures  which  repre- 
sent Votan  on  both  continents,  and  this  tradition  was  con- 
firmed some  years  later  by  the  discovery  of  divers  medals. 

"With  great  diligence  and  labor,  Cabrera  availed  himself 
of  these  sources  and  commentaries  on  the  history  oi  the 
past,  and  drew  from  them  the  following  conclusion,  which 
alone  we  can  here  offer  to  our  readers',  the  limit  oi  our  work 
not  permitting  an  extended  statement  ol  the  ingenious  proofs 
brought  forward  by  the  author. 

"Cabrera  thinks  that  ;i  Chivim  is  the  same  as  ;i  (iivim  or 
Hivim,  i.e.  a   descendant   oi    Ileth,    the   son    ol    Canaan.      To 


26  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

the  Givims  or  Hivites  (Avims  or  Avites),  of  whom  mention 
is  made  in  Deuteronomy  (ch.  ii.  v.  23)  and  in  Joshua  (ch.  xiii. 
v.  3),  belonged  Cadmus  and  his  wife  Hermione,  who,  as  we 
read  in  Ovid's  "  Metamorphoses,"  were  changed  into  serpents 
and  elevated  to  the  dignity  of  gods.  It  is  probably  owing  to 
this  table  that  in  the  Phoenician  language  the  word  '  Givim  ' 
signifies  also  a  serpent.  The  city  of  Tripoli,  under  the 
dependence  of  Tyre,  was  anciently  called  Chivim  ;  and  the 
theme  or  topic  of  Votan,  '  I  am  a  serpent  (wise  man) 
because  I  am  Chivim,'  simply  means,  when  interpreted,  'I 
am  a  1  Iivite  of  Tripoli,'  a  city  which  he  calls  Valum  Votan. 
Building  on  a  profound  consideration  of  ancient  history, 
Cabrera  believes  that  the  Tyrian  Hercules,  who,  according 
to  Diodorus,  went  over  the  entire  world,  was  the  ancestor 
of  Votan  ;  that  the  island  of  Hispaniola  is  the  ancient  Sep- 
timia.  and  the  city  of  Alecto  that  of  Valum,  from  which 
Votan  began  his  journevings.  lie  also  thinks  that  the  thir- 
teen serpents  signify  the  thirteen  Canary  Isles,  which  derive 
their  name  from  their  inhabitants,  the  Canaanites,  who  tar- 
ried in  them  jointly  with  the  Hivites;  and  that  the  marks 
or  indications  which  Votan  erected  in  the  pathway  to  his 
brothers  mean  the  two  columns  of  white  marble  found  at 
Tangier,  with  this  inscription  in  the  Phoenician  language: 
'We  are  the  sons  of  those  who  fled  from  the  robber  Joshua, 
the  >on  of   Xun,  and  found  here  a  secure  asylum.' 

"  The  journey  of  Votan  to  Rome,  and  the  vast  temple  which 
he  saw  being  constructed  in  that  city,  are  events  which,  accord- 
ing to  the  foregoing  conclusions,  should  have  taken  place  in 
the  year  290  before  the  Christian  era,  when,  after  an  obsti- 
nate  and   bloody  war  of  eight  years   with  the   Samnites,  the 


THE    QUETZAL.  2J 

Romans  granted  peace  to  that  people,  and  the  Consul  Publius 
Cornelius  Rufus  commanded  to  be  built  a  sumptuous  temple 
in  honor  of  Romulus  and  Remus,  an  event  which,  according 
to  Mexican  chronology,  took  place  in  the  year  'eight  rab- 
bits' (Toxli).  The  seven  Tzequil  families  which  Votan 
encountered  on  his  return  were  also  Phoenicians,  and  prob- 
ably shipwrecked  persons  from  the  Phoenician  embarkation 
mentioned  by   Diodorus. 

"  According  to  Cabrera,  the  first  emigration  or  colony  of  the 
Carthaginians  in  America  took  place  in  the  First  Punic  War. 
The  other  conclusions  of  this  author  relative  to  the  founda- 
tion of  the  kingdom  of  Amahnamacan  by  the  Carthaginians, 
the  emigration  of  the  Toltecs,  etc.,  are  incompatible  with  the 
limits  of  our  work  ;  but  we  cannot  do  less  than  remark  here 
on  the  opinions  of  many  learned  men  who  think  that  the 
Toltecan  god  Ouetzalcoatl  is  identical  with  the  apostle  St. 
Thomas;  and  it  is  observable  that  the  surname  of  this 
apostle,  Didimus  (twin),  has  the  same  significance  in  Creek 
that  Ouetzalcoatl  has  in  Mexican.  It  is  astonishing,  also,  to 
consider  the  numerous  and  extensive  regions  traversed  by 
this  apostle  ;  for,  though  some  confine  them  to  Parthia, 
others  extend  them  to  Calamita,  a  doubtful  city  in  India; 
others  as  far  as  Maliopur  (at  this  day  the  city  of  St.  Thomas 
on  the  Coromandel  coast);  others  even  t<>  China,  and,  as  we 
have  seen,  there  are  not  wanting  those  who  think  that  be- 
came even  to  Central  America. 

"Wo  decline  making  any  remarks  on  the  documents  oi 
Votan  and  the  interpretations  of  Cabrera,  since,  even  il  they 
arc  not  considered  fabulous,  they  do  not  present  a  species  ol 
evidence  perfectly  tree  from  suspicion." 


28  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  association  of  the  American  prophet  and  instructor, 
Quetzalcoatl,  with  St.  Thomas,  and  with  the  emblem  of  the 
Toltec  faith  as  found  in  the  quetzal,  gives  a  poetic  coloring 
to  the  forest  wonder  of  ruby,  pearl,  and  emerald  feathers 
and  plumes.  A  naturalist  with  a  poetic  fancy  might  well 
search  long  and  far  for  a  living  representation  of  these 
ancient  mysteries.  What  the  odorous  cactus  is  to  the  flowers 
of  these  countries,  the  quetzal  is  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
air,  whose  home  is  among  the  orchids  of  the  ruins  and  the 
ancient  trees. 

THE    MYSTERIOUS    CROSS. 

Do  the  lost  cities  of  Guatemala  and  Yucatan  themselves 
reveal  any  suggestions  of  a  Jewish,  Egyptian,  Greek,  or 
Christian  origin  ?  There  are  two  things  found  in  these  ruins 
that  excite  the  wonder  of  the  most  literal  mind.  One  is  the 
arch  and  the  other  is  the  cross. 

We  have  seen  a  copy  of  a  sculptured  picture  found  in  one 
of  the  sanctuaries  of  Palenque,  the  lost  city  of  Yucatan.  It 
represents  a  cross,  and  a  devotee  on  one  side  praying  to 
the  cross,  and  another  devotee  on  the  other  side  making  an 
offering  to  the  same  cross.  The  picture  is  taken  from 
Stephens'  classic  and  immortal  work,  "  Incidents  of  Travel  in 
Central  America."  In  its  suggestions  this  picture,  or  the 
sculpture  represented  by  it,  is  the  most  remarkable  ever 
made  by  a  human   hand  in   the  Western  world. 

Let  the  reader  examine  it  ;  every  line  is  beauty,  all  the 
multiple  forms  are  conceptions  of  the  highest  art. 

Was  there  ever  drawn  a  cross  of  such  wonderful  beauty? 
In   the  cathedral  windows  of    Europe,  in   St.   Peter's,  in   the 


THE    QUETZAL.  20, 

Holy  Sepulchre,  has  anything  ever  appeared  that  can  sur- 
pass this  conception  of  the  agent  of  crucifixion  and  sacrifice 
that  has  lifted  the  world  ? 

When  the  Spanish  padres  beheld  this  marvellous  cross, 
they  said,  "  The  ancient  inhabitants  of  Palcnque  were  Chris- 
tians." 

Were  they  ?  Had  the  religious  teacher  Quetzalcoatl  any 
association  with  some  wandering  St.  Thomas  from  the  East- 
ern world  ? 

As  the  reader  is  to  follow  the  fortunes  of  our  travellers 
into  Nicaragua,  he  should,  by  way  of  introduction,  know 
something  of  this  great  chieftain  from  which  the  country  of 
the  lakes  and  the  projected  canal  received  its  name. 

A    STOKV    OF    THE    CACIQUE    NICARAGUA,    AND    (JXE    OF    LAS 
CASAS,    THE    GOOD    DOMINICAN*. 

In  the  old  Darien  days,  long,  however,  before  the  Darien 
scheme,  the  Spanish  governor  of  the  wonderful  country 
sent  an  adventurer  named  Davila  to  explore  the  coast.  In 
1522,  a  hundred  years  before  the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims  at 
Plymouth,  this  voyager  sailed  along  the  Mosquito  country, 
and  came  to  the  harbor  near  where  Greytown  now  stands, 
and  entered  the  San  Juan  River,  as  the  natural  canal  is  now 
called.  The  stream  was  then,  as  now,  an  avenue  through 
tropical  forests,  in  which  dwelt  inquisitive  parrots  ami  still 
more  wondering  monkeys. 

As  Davila  passed  along,  wonder  led  to  wonder,  until  there 
opened  before  him  a  lake  ot  volcanoes,  and  he  came  to  an 
Indian  city  on  the  lake. 


30  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  It  is  Nicaragua,"  they  said.  The  word  is  also  written 
Micaragua,  and  the  place  is  ealled  Nicoya.  The  town  of 
Rivas  stands  now  near  where  ancient  Nicaragua  stood. 

"  What  is  the  name  of  your  cacique  ?  "  asked  Davila. 

"  Nicaragua,"  answered  the  Indians. 

The  explorer  sought  an  interview  with  the  chief  of  this 
marvellous  lake,  over  which  rose  mountains  green  with  palms 
and  enchanting  with  fruits  and  flowers. 

He  told  the  chief  that  he  came  to  him  as  a  messenger  from 
heaven,  to  bring  him  a  new  religion.  The  priests  told  him 
the  tale  of  the  Garden  of  Eden. 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  "  said  the  chief. 

They  told  him  the  tale  of  the  flood. 

"  But  how  do  you  know  ?  "  asked  the  chief. 

"  God  revealed  it  from  heaven,"  said  the  priest. 

"  But  how  ?  "  asked  the  cacique.  "  Did  he  come  down  on 
a  rainbow  ?  " 

This  was  really  the  cacique's  question,  if  we  may  trust 
Peter  Martyr,  and  it  shows  a  very  poetic  imagination. 

As  the  priests  continued  to  instruct  Nicaragua,  they  found 
him  a  man  with  a  very  clear  mind. 

To  all  that  they  told  him  he  asked,  "  How  do  you  know?" 
and  as  the  answers  did  not  satisfy  him,  they  said, — ■ 

"  We  will  tell  you  what  we  do  know,  and  leave  the  rest  to 
God." 

But,  although  he  questioned  everything,  Nicaragua  saw 
that  the  religion  of  the  messengers  was  better  than  his  blind 
idolatries.  In  the  Gospel  he  found  a  wonderful  revelation, 
and  he  rejoiced  at  its  power,  and  accepted  it,  and  desired  to 
be  baptized. 


THE    QUETZAL.  3  I 

So  it  was  arranged  that,  like  Clovis  of  France,  he  should 
be  baptized,  and  his  court  and  arm)'  with  him. 

"But,"  said  the  invader,  "you  must  promise  never  to 
wage  war  against  the  Spanish  race." 

"  That  would  be  hard  in  case  that  I  were  to  be  wronged," 
said  the  king. 

Why  this  shrewd  native  did  not  demand  of  the  Spaniards 
that  they  should  not  wage  war  against  him  and  his  people 
before  he  received  baptism,  we  cannot  tell,  but  the  Spaniards 
told  him  that  war  was  sin,  and  that  he  could  not  receive  sal- 
vation unless  he  would  live  a  life  of  peace. 

"Then  I  will  give  up  war,"  he  said,  in  a  truly  Christian 
spirit. 

Nicaragua  and  his  people  were  baptized,  and  gave  up  war; 
but  the  Spaniards  soon  began  to  slaughter  the  Indians  for 
their  treasures,  and  never  ceased  to  do  this  until  they  aban- 
doned the  country.  Their  rule  was  a  long  tyranny,  in  which 
the  poor  Indians  were  enslaved  and  killed  without  mercy, 
and  robbed  without  any  sense  or  pretension  of  justice. 

The  Indians  became  much  better  Christians  than  their 
masters;  they  saw  the  value  of  Christianity,  but  wondered 
how  those  who  preached  this  sublime  Gospel  could  imperil 
their  own  souls  by  cruelty  and  wrong. 

The  Spaniards  had  hardly  converted  the  cacicpie  and  his 
tribe  before  they  began  to  show  their  greed  lor  gold. 

The  chief  wondered  at  this.  To  him  gold  represented  but 
little  that  was  essential  to  true  happiness  m  lite. 

lie  one  day  came  to  the  explorer. 

"I  am  filled  with  surprise,"  he  said  sorrowfully. 

"At  what3"   asked  the  explorer. 


32  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"That  so  few  men  should  so  greatly  desire  so  much 
gold!" 

This  was  nearly  his  exact  expression.  Can  we  wonder  at 
it?  If  we  are  surprised  that  the  Spaniards  should  have  put 
gold  before  justice  then,  can  we  be  less  so  that  it  is  so  now? 

We  love  to  think  of  the  beautiful  soul  of  this  chief,  so 
earnest  to  know  the  reason  of  things,  and  so  willing  to  accept 
that  which  was  best  for  him  and  his  people  when  it  was 
made  clear  to  him. 

And  who  will  not  be  touched  by  sympathy  for  him,  at  his 
great  disappointment  that  men  who  could  preach  so  well 
should  so  little  heed  their  own  sublime  faith,  but  held  their 
selfish  desires  above  the  spiritual  life  that  promises  a  better 
world  than  this. 

So  the  Indians  of  Nacoya  became  a  Christian  race,  and 
splendid  churches  and  golden  altars  arose  among  the  palms, 
fruit  gardens,  and  orchards,  and  their  idols  sunk  into  the  earth, 
where  we  may  find  them  to-day. 

Central  America  was  the  New  England  of  Spain,  and  Nica- 
ragua merits  mention  with  the  great  and  noble  Massasoit 
in  the  deeds  of  the  vanished  race. 

THE     STORY     OF     LAS     CASAS     AND     THE     SINGING     INDIAN     MER- 
CHANTS. 

4 

We  must  account  this  story  as  one  of  the  best  ever  told  in 
the  great  Latin  empire  of  the  New  World.  We  cannot  be 
sure  of  the  great  legends  of  the  Golden  Age  in  Guatemala,  or 
of  the  Golden  Age  in  Peru,  but  that  one  of  the  most  warlike 
and  ferocious  tribes  of   Indians  was  won  to  a  true  and  peace- 


THE    QUETZAL.  33 

ful  faith  by  travelling  singers,  and  the  influence  of  Las  Casas 
of  blessed  memory,  is  true,  and  the  story  is  as  beautiful  as  it 
is  true. 

Of  all  the  missionary  priests  in  early  America,  Las  Casas 
is  the  most  ideal.  He  taught  justice  to  the  Indians,  and  the 
authority  of  the  law  of  righteousness  which  applied  to  all  men 
alike, —  kings,  priests,  and  people.  I  le  defended  the  rights  of 
all  men,  and  especially  those  of  the  Indians  in  America.  He 
told  kings  and  ecclesiastics  that  they  had  no  right  to  wage 
war  against  the  natives  of  America,  or  to  rob  them  or  enslave 
them  because  they  were  "infidels,"  and  had  never  heard  the 
Gospel. 

Arthur  Helps  says  in  his  preface  to  his  "  Life  of  Las 
Casas,"  that  this  defender  of  humanity  in  the  wilderness  is 
the  most  interesting  character  that  he  had  ever  studied,  and 
that  he  looked  upon  him  as  one  of  "the  most  interesting 
characters  that  ever  appeared  in  history."  He  certainly  was 
the  truest  Christian  philanthropist  in  Spanish  America.  He 
was  called  the  "Apostle  to  the  Indies." 

Bartholomew  de  Las  Casas  was  the  son  of  Antonio  de  Las 
Casas,  who  was  one  of  the  companions  of  Columbus  on  the 
voyage  of  discovery.  He  was  born  in  Seville,  1474.  At  the 
age  ot  twenty-eight  he  made  his  first  voyage  to  America,  and 
at  the  age  of  ninety-two  this  old  young  man  contended  be- 
fore Philip  II.  in  favor  of  the  Guatemalans  having  courts  of 
justice  of  their  own. 

In  15.36  Las  Casas,  then  over  sixty  years  of  age,  whieh  was 
the  youth  of  old  age  to  him,  came  to  Guatemala,  and  occu- 
pied a  convent  there.  The  Spanish  rule  over  the  natives  ol 
New   Spain,   as   Central    America  was  then   called,  was  most 


34  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

tyrannical  and  merciless.  If  Indians  could  not  follow  their 
new  leaders  into  the  deep  forests,  the  latter  killed  them,  and 
hundreds  were  known  to  go  away  with  the  conquerors  and  to 
never  return.  To  rob,  kill,  and  pay  no  regard  to  the  feelings 
of  the  native  races  was  a  part  of  the  Spanish  policy,  which 
was  justified  as  waging  war  against  "infidels."  Las  Casas 
became  a  defender  of  the  rights  of  the  Indians  of  Guatemala, 
both  in  name  and  spirit. 

Las  Casas,  in  1533,  wrote  a  treatise,  which  then  excited 
the  world,  in  which  he  claimed  that  men  must  be  brought  to 
Christianity  by  spiritual  persuasion,  and  not  by  force  of  arms, 
and  that  it  was  not  lawful  to  make  war  against  infidels  merely 
because  they  Were  infidels.  He  was  to  New  Spain,  or  Cen- 
tral America,  what  Roger  Williams  was  to  New  England. 
The  Spanish  conquerors,  who  enslaved  Indians  because  they 
were  infidels,  were  greatly  incensed  by  these  doctrines. 

The  colonists  of  Guatemala  derided  Las  Casas. 

"  Put  your  faith  into  practice,"  they  said.  "  Convert  one 
of  the  tribes  of  Indians  by  personal  appeal  and  love,  and  we 
will  then  consider  your  theories." 

"That  I  will  do  in  God's  name,"  said  Las  Casas. 

There  was  a  province  in  Guatemala  called  Tuzalatan,  which 
bore  the  name  of  Tierra  de  Guerra,  or  the  Land  of  War. 
The  Indian  tribe  here  was  most  untamable  and  savage.  No 
Spaniards  dared  to  go  near  them,  for  they  were  as  merciless 
against  them  as  the  Spaniards  were  themselves  cruel  to  all 
the  Indian  races. 

In  May,  1537,  Las  Casas  made  an  agreement  with  the  gov- 
ernor of  Guatemala  that  if  he  could  Christianize  these  Indians 
they  should  be   made  subject  to  their  own   rulers  under  the 


THE    QUETZAL.  35 

Spanish  crown,  and  be  treated  with  justice  as  a  Christian 
people. 

But  how  was  the  benevolent  Las  Casas  to  find  a  way  to 
the  savage  hearts  of  these  people  ?  The  Indians  looked 
upon  the  monks  as  their  enemies.  He  could  not  go  there. 
He  thought  on  the  subject. 

There  were  certain  Indian  merchants  that  went  freely 
among  the  tribes  of  Guatemala  and  Nicaragua,  carrying  with 
them  choice  goods  to  sell.  These  could  travel  freely  in  the 
terrible  Land  of  War.  Their  coming  to  any  place  made  a 
holiday.  Las  Casas  saw  that  through  these  men  he  might 
approach  the  revengeful  savages. 

How  ? 

These  Indians  loved  music.  Their  ears  were  open  to 
sweet  sounds,  and  gentle  music  reached  their  hearts  through 
their  ears.  Music  was  to  them  a  language  of  the  soul. 
It  made  them  kindly ;  it  tended  to  love,  and  help,  and 
tears. 

A  band  of  these  trading  Indians  were  friends  of  the  good 
Las  Casas.  They  could  sing  and  play  on  rude  native  instru- 
ments. Las  Casas  was  familiar  with  the  methods  of  the 
troubadours,  of  whom  one  may  read  in  Ticknor's  "History 
of  Spanish  Literature."  He  would  teach  these  Indian  mer- 
chants to  sing  the  Gospel,  and  to  accompany  their  songs  on 
musical  instruments,  and  would  send  them  into  the  Land  ot 
War.  The  songs  must  be  short  and  many  ;  the)-  must  con- 
sist ot  some  two  lines  each.  They  must  tell  of  how  the 
world  was  created;  how  men  sinned;  how  Christ  came  into 
the  world  to  redeem  men  from  sin.  They  must  say  that 
idols   are   not    uods. 


36  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

As,  for   example,  although   we   have   no  copies  of   these 

songs :  — 

••The  idols  cannot  see, 
God  only  man  can  see  !  " 


or 


or 


"The  idols  cannot  hear. 
God  only  man  can  hear  I'' 

"  The  idols  have  no  power, 
'Tis  God  alone  has  power  ! " 


Such  couplets  they  would  sing  over  and  over,  playing  on 
the  musical  instruments.  The  king  and  his  subjects  were  so 
susceptible  to  music  that  they  would  listen.  So  they  would 
wonder  at  the  words  in  the  evening  shadows  of  the  moun- 
tains of  Guatemala. 

Now,  when  the  Indian  merchants  should  have  sung  that 
idols  were  not  gods,  the  Indians  of  the  Land  of  War 
would  say,  — 

"  How  do  you  know  ?  "   and  ask,  "  Who  taught  you  that  ?  " 

To  the  last  question  the  traders  would  answer,  — 

"  We  learned  our  songs  from  the  monks.  You  must  send 
for  them  to  answer  your  questions." 

Happy  thought!     The  Indian  merchants  went  away. 

The  result  of  this  admirable  plan  is  beautifully  told  by 
Arthur  Helps  in  his  "  Life  of  Las  Casas."  We  know  of  no 
more  beautiful  story  anywhere.      Mr.  Helps  says:  — 

"  The  merchants  were  received,  as  was  the  custom  in  a 
country  without  inns,  into  the  palace  of  the  cacique,  where 
they  met  with  a  better  reception  than  usual,  being  enabled  to 
make  him  presents  of  these  new  things  from  Castile.  The}' 
then  set  up  their  tent  and  began  to  sell  their  goods  as  they 


THE    QUETZAL.  37 

were  wont  to  do,  their  customers  thronging  about  to  see  the 
Spanish  novelties.  When  the  sale  was  over  for  that  day,  the 
chief  men  amongst  the  Indians  remained  with  the  cacique  to 
do  him  honor.  In  the  evening  the  merchants  asked  for  a 
"teplanastle,"  an  instrument  of  music  which  we  may  suppose 
to  have  been  the  same  as  the  Mexican  teponazli,  or  drum. 
They  then  produced  some  timbrels  and  bells  which  they  had 
brought  with  them,  and  began  to  sing  the  verses  which  they 
had  learned  to  sing  by  heart,  accompanying  themselves  on 
the  musical  instruments.  The  effect  produced  was  very 
great.  The  sudden  change  of  character,  not  often  made, 
from  a  merchant  to  a  priest,  at  once  arrested  the  attention  of 
the  assemblage.  Then,  if  the  music  was  beyond  anything  that 
these  Indians  had  heard,  the  words  were  still  more  extraor- 
dinary ;  for  the  good  fathers  had  not  hesitated  to  put  into 
their  verses  the  questionable  assertion  that  idols  were  demons, 
and  the  certain  fact  that  human  sacrifices  were  abominable. 
The  main  bod)'  of  the  audience  was  delighted,  and  pro- 
nounced these  merchants  to  be  ambassadors  from  new  gods. 
"The  cacique,  with  the  caution  of  a  man  in  authority,  sus- 
pended his  judgment  until  he  had  heard  more  of  the  matter. 
The  next  da)',  and  for  seven  succeeding  days,  this  sermon  in 
song  was  repeated.  In  public  and  in  private  the  person  who 
insisted  most  on  this  repetition  was  the  cacique;  and  he 
expressed  a  wish  to  fathom  the  matter,  and  to  know  the 
origin  and  meaning  ot  these  things.  The  prudent  merchants 
replied  that  they  only  sang  what  the)-  had  heard;  that  it 
was  not  their  business  to  explain  these  verses,  for  that  office 
belonged  to  certain  padres,  who  instructed  the  people.  '.And 
who  are  the   padres?'    asked   the  chief.      In  answer  to  this 


38  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

question,  the  merchants  painted  pictures  of  the  Dominican 
monks,  in  their  robes  of  black  and  white,  and  with  their 
tonsured  heads.  The  merchants  then  described  the  lives  of 
these  padres:  how  they  did  not  eat  meat,  and  how  they  did 
not  desire  gold,  or  feathers,  or  cocoa ;  that  they  were  not 
married,  and  had  no  communication  with  women  ;  that  night 
and  day  they  sang  the  praises  of  God  ;  and  that  they  knelt 
before  very  beautiful  images.  Such  were  the  persons,  the 
merchants  said,  who  could  and  would  explain  these  couplets  ; 
they  were  such  good  people,  and  so  ready  to  teach,  that  if 
the  cacique  were  to  send  for  them  they  would  most  willingly 
come. 

"The  Indian  chief  resolved  to  see  and  hear  these  marvellous 
men  in  black  and  white,  with  their  hair  in  the  form  of  a  gar- 
land, who  were  so  different  from  other  men  ;  and  for  this 
purpose,  when  the  merchants  returned,  he  sent  in  company 
with  them  a  brother  of  his,  a  young  man  twenty-two  years  of 
age,  who  was  to  invite  the  Dominicans  to  visit  his  brother's 
country,  and  to  carry  them  presents.  The  cautious  cacique 
instructed  his  brother  to  look  well  to  the  ways  of  these  padres, 
to  observe  whether  they  had  gold  and  silver  like  the  other 
Christians,  and  whether  there  were  women  in  their  houses. 
These  instructions  having  been  given,  and  his  brother  having 
taken  his  departure,  the  cacique  made  large  offerings  of  in- 
cense and  great  sacrifices  to  his  idols  for  the  success  of  the 
embassage." 

I  low  beautiful  this  mission  of  singing  merchants  and  peace- 
ful monks  must  have  been  ! 

So  the  monks  came  to  preach  where  the  wandering  mer- 
chants had  been  singing  in  the  Land  of  War.     Their  journey 


u 


THE    QUETZAL.  ■      W  39 

into  the  country  was  a  triumph.  The  people  met  them  with 
rejoicing,  dancing,  and  garlands  of  flowers.  The  singers 
sang  and  the  monks  explained  the  songs.  The  king  received 
the  Gospel  through  them,  cast  down  his  idols,  and  was  bap- 
tized, and  the  people  followed  him  and  learned  the  songs  of 
the  missionaries. 

A  church  arose  where  the  idol  temple  had  been.  The 
Indians  became  Christians  and  accepted  the  authority  of  the 
King  of  Spain. 

There  was  a  kind-hearted  pope  at  this  time,  Paul  III. 
Now  Las  Casas  was  a  Dominican  monk,  and  when  this  pope 
heard  of  the  singing  merchants,  and  what  the  Dominicans 
had  accomplished,  he  was  greatly  pleased,  and  he  pronounced 
a  sentence  of  excommunication  against  any  who  "reduce 
these  Indians  to  slavery,  or  rob  them  of  their  goods."  So 
there  came  a  Golden  Age  to  the  Indian  church  at  Guatemala. 


CHAPTER   II. 


THE    YOUNG    GERMAN-    COFFEE    PLANTER. 


AS  we  have  described  our  travellers  in  "  Over  the  Andes," 
one  of  the  boys,  Leigh  Frobisher,  was  greatly  inter- 
ested in  botany  and  ornithology,  and  the  other  in  coffee 
raising,  tropical  fruits,  and  commercial  opportunities. 

They  were  happy  in  the  acquaintances  that  they  made 
on  the  ship  that  came  by  the  way  of  Bocas  del  Toro  to  Port 
Limon. 

In  one  of  these  they  were  particularly  fortunate.  He  was 
a  young  German  who  owned  a  coffee  plantation  near  the 
ancient  city  of  Cartago,  at  the  foot  of  the  once  terrible  vol- 
cano Irazu.  Cartago,  where  are  the  wonderful  hot  springs 
of  Costa  Rica,  famous  for  the  cure  of  rheumatism  and  blood 
diseases,  is  a  very  ancient  city,  some  fourteen  miles  from 
San  Jose.  It  has  an  elevation  of  some  five  thousand  feet, 
and  Irazu  rises  above  it,  looking  like  a  simple  hill  green  with 
farms,  but  which  is  really  nearly  as  high  as  Mt.  Washing- 
ton from  this  point,  in  all  eleven  thousand  to  twelve  thousand 
feet  high,  and  some  six  thousand  from  the  valley  of  Cartago. 

Irazu    is   a   well-behaved    mountain    now.      Perhaps   it   has 

been  baptized,  for  misbehaving  volcanoes  were  once  baptized 

in  Central  America,  and  some  holy  fathers  who  went  over  a 

threatening  pass  to  sprinkle  one  of  the  smoking  peaks  never 

returned  again. 

4o 


THE  YOUNG  GERMAN  COFFEE  PLANTER.         41 

Irazii  blew  off  its  head  at  the  last  eruption,  and  left  it,  over 
the  summit  from  Cartago,  in  a  quiet  valley,  where,  we  are 
told,  it  may  still  be  seen.  The  ancient  town  of  Cartago  was 
largely  destroyed  in  this  eruption  ;  but  the  people  who  re- 
mained picked  up  the  rocks  that  the  giant  had  thrown  down 
upon  them,  and  built  beautiful  churches  with  them  ;  and  the 
traveller  to-day  can  hardly  believe  that  the  cool  and  peace- 
ful mountain,  whose  farms  rise  above  the  many  towers  of 
Cartago,  is  the  terrible  Irazu. 

The  climate  here  is  like  Xew  England  in  June,  or  Swit- 
zerland in  September,  all  the  year.  People  who  have  had 
malarial  fevers  in  the  cities  on  the  coast  flee  to  Cartago  for 
recovery. 

The  young  German,  whom  our  travellers  met  on  the 
steamer,  owned  a  coffee  plantation  between  Cartago  and  San 
Jose,  a  little  apart  from  the  magnificent  farms  or  haciendas 
on  the  public  ways.  He  was  returning  to  his  coffee  farm, 
and  taking  his  father  with  him.  The  young  man  had  been 
in  the  country  some  seven  years,  lie  spoke  English  and 
Spanish,  and  was  interested  in  the  educational  progress  of 
the  country. 

One  day,  on  deck,  the  English  captain  of  the  ship,  who 
had  a  very  friendly  heart,  came  and  sat  down  by  Captain 
Erobisher,  Alonzo,  and  Leigh. 

"Captain  Morris,"  said  Captain  Erobisher,  "what  do  you 
know  about  coffee  raising  in  Costa  Rica?" 

"Ask  young  Aleman  there,  the  German;  I  have  for- 
gotten what  the  purser  said  his  name  was.  I  call  him  young 
Aleman,  and  his  father  who  is  with  him  old  Airman,  tor 
short.      He    is    making    money   at    coffee   raising,    I   am   told, 


42  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

though  the  price  of  coffee  has  fallen  ;  these  young  Germans, 
they  would  make  money  anywhere." 

"Captain  Morris,"  said  Captain  Frobisher,  "is  it  your  view 
that  a  young  American,  like  one  of  my  boys  here,  would  do 
well  to  settle  down  on  a  coffee  plantation  in  Costa  Rica?" 

"  No  ;    positively  not." 

"Why,  Captain  Morris?  You  say  that  the  German  — 
young  Aleman  —  is  prosperous,  although  the  price  of  coffee 
is  low.  If  he  is  doing  well,  why  should  not  my  boys,  as  I 
call  my  nephews,  be  successful  ?  " 

"  For  the  reason  that  they  are  Americans." 

Captain  Frobisher  looked  surprised. 

"  Hut  what  of  that,  Captain  ?  " 

"  What  ?     Everything — they  are  educated  wrong." 

"  I  am  surprised  to  hear  you  say  that,  Captain.  Explain  to 
me  what  you  mean.  Why  are  my  nephews  educated  differ- 
ently from  the  German  student  ?  " 

"  Captain  Frobisher,  your  nephews  are  educated  to  habits 
of  extravagance.  That  young  German  has  been  trained  to 
habits  of  economy.  He  knows  the  value  of  a  dollar;  your 
nephews  do  not.  Excuse  me,  my  good  friend,  for  plain  speak- 
ing in  answer  to  your  own  question.  Old  Aleman  there 
knows  the  value  of  a  dollar — you  do  not;  you  think  you  do 
—  your  New  England  ancestors  did." 

He  continued,  "Excuse  me,  my  boys,  if  I  talk  plain  to  you 
in  regard  to  life  in  Costa  Rica.  If  there  be  any  true  republic 
on  earth,  it  is  Costa  Rica.  The  races  there  mingle  on  an 
equality,  and  when  the  young  German  goes  there  and  slowly 
makes  for  himself  a  coffee  farm  or  a  banana  plantation,  and 
becomes  worth  ten  thousand  to  fifty  thousand  dollars,  he  does 


THE  YOUNG  GERMAN  COFFEE  PLANTER.  43 

not  go  over  to  England  to  spend  it  making  a  fool  of  himself. 
He  does  not  go  to  the  dissipated  cities  to  make  a  show  of 
himself,  or  to  gratify  his  appetites  and  passions  in  places 
where  he  fancies  himself  a  social  leader,  but  where  in  reality 
he  amounts  to  nothing  at  all  — where  he  is  really  of  no  more 
consequence  than  a  last  year's  gadfly.  He  perhaps  goes  to 
Germany,  as  young  Aleman  has  done,  and  brings  over  his 
old  father  to  his  growing  plantation,  as  young  Aleman  is  now 
doing.  Young  Aleman  has  missionary  ideas  ;  these  mean  the 
good  of  the  country.      He  will  stay  there. 

"  When  young  Aleman  there  shall  be  worth  say  fifty  thou- 
sand dollars,  he  will  not  greatly  change  his  present  mode  of 
life.  The  Costa  Rieans  are  proud  of  their  simple  living,  as 
much  so  as  your  people  are  fond  of  show  and  ot  exciting  the 
envy  of  others  by  putting  those  who  are  less  favored  at  a 
social  disadvantage." 

Captain  Frobisher  was  touched.  He  pounded  his  cane 
on  the  deck  and  said,  "  Show  !  that  cannot  be  so.  You  are 
prejudiced,  Captain   Morris." 

"No,  pardon  me;  I  am  not,"  said  the  captain.  "  Have  I 
not  carried  thousands  of  newly  rich  Americans  across  the 
.Atlantic?  Your  country  was  once  proud  of  its  democracy 
and  social  worth  and  justice  and  character.  You  had  great 
men  then.  A  few  of  your  people  now  become  rich,  and  these 
take  upon  themselves  almost  court  airs,  and  set  a  low  and 
vulgar  example  for  those  who  toil  and  struggle.  These 
people,  as  a  rule,  have  no  place  among  men  ol  true  worth  ;is 
their  ancestors  had.  They  give  their  children  a  superficial 
education  in  many  arts,  most  of  which  amounts  to  nothing; 
but  they  are  not  schooled   in   the   restraints  ol    honest   thrift 


44  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

and  to  the  fact  that  integrity  is  everything.  Much  of  what 
you  call  a  high  social  standing,  the  Old  World  looks  upon  as 
a  cheap,  vulgar  show." 

Captain  Frobisher  puffed  out  his  cheeks  and  pounded  his 
cane  again  on  the  deck,  and  said,  — 

"  Hoys,  if  I  thought  that  what  the  captain  has  been  saying 
applied  to  you,  I  would  get  you  educated  over  again. 

"You  are  a  little  too  hard,  Captain,"  he  added.  "I  wish 
that  you  would  introduce  us  to  young  Aleman.  There  may 
be  a  grain  of  salt  in  what  you  say,  but  my  boys  arc  as  good 
as  any  young  German.     There  !  " 

Captain  Frobisher  brought  his  cane  down  on  the  deck  with 
a  vigorous  thump,  after  which  followed  the  desired  introduc- 
tion. 

"These  people,  my  young  German  friend,"  said  Captain 
Morris,  "are  Americans  of  the  true  Washington  and  Jeffer- 
son type  —  of  real  common  sense,  who  have  not  forgotten 
their  democratic  ancestry.  They  want  to  know  how  to  plant 
coffee,  and  how  to  live  in  the  country  and  make  money,  as 
you  do,  and,  I  hope,  how  to  benefit  the  country,  as  you  desire 
to  do." 

Young  Aleman  was  a  bright-faced  German,  and  his  face 
lighted  up  at  the  odd  introduction.  lie  brought  his  father 
to  the  company,  and  introduced  him  to  Captain  Frobisher 
and  Alonzo  and  Leigh. 

The  two  Germans,  young  Aleman  and  old  Aleman,  were 
given  to  story  telling,  and  to  illustrating  what  they  had  to 
sav  by  narrative  and  anecdote. 

"We  are  about  to  go  into  Costa  Rica,"  said  Captain 
Frobisher,  "and  we  wish  to  know  how  to  visit  the  country 


THE  YOUNG  GERMAN  COFFEE  PLANTER.         45 

most  intelligently.  The  captain  here  has  been  criticising  our 
habits  and  customs  somewhat  severely.  He  thinks  we  have 
too  large  heads  ;  isn't  that  it,  Captain  ?  My  good  German 
friend,  tell  us  what  we  should  first  shun  in  visiting  the 
country." 

"  Well,"  said  young  Aleman,  "  I  had  much  to  learn  when 
I  first  came  to  Costa  Rica  ;  let  me  tell  you  a  little  story,  if 
you  care  to  hear  me;  it  may  prove  useful  to  you." 


CHAPTER    III. 

BUCKING    AGAINST    THE    CLIMATE. 

I  CAM K  down  to  the  Mosquito  Coast  from  Hamburg, 
like  a  young  American  from  the  New  England  hills  and 
shores,  full  of  hardy  vigor,  and  as  well  supplied  with  ambi- 
tion and  resolution.  I  took  this  native  force  into  the  palm 
lands,  and  maintained  it  for  some  months.  I  was  full  of 
admiration  for  the  dazzling  seas,  the  green  palm  groves,  the 
fruits,  and  the  resources  of  life  on  every  hand;  and  I  looked 
down  with  contempt  on  what  seemed  to  me  a  lazy  and  incom- 
petent people,  unwilling  to  profit  by  opportunity,  and  more 
thoughtful  of  ease  than  of  progress.  I  had  come  here  in  the 
hope  of  helping  these  people  in  an  educational  way  ;  every 
one  should  have  a  purpose  beyond  money  making. 

"  In  the  glowing  hours  of  the  day,  they  lay  under  the 
palms,  the  sea-walls,  or  bowery  verandas.  The  great  giants 
of  negroes,  as  well  as  people  of  resources  and  competence, 
did  this.  I  thought  of  establishing  a  mid-day  school  for 
them. 

"  'They  spend  the  best  part  of  the  day  in  idleness,'  I  used 
to  saw  '  Idleness  is  the  curse  of  the  country.'  My  German 
blood  was  yet  thick.  I  put  on  a  felt  hat,  and  went  forth 
into  the  sun  in  the  noonday  hours,  and  into  the  dews  in  the 
evening. 

"  They  rode  lazily  on  little  mules;  I  walked.  They  did 
their   marketing  in    the   early   morning   hours,  and   then  de- 

46 


BUCKING    AGAINST    THE    CLIMATE.  47 

sorted  the  streets.  I  visited  the  stores  in  the  afternoon  to 
find  them  empty,  or  filled  with  sleeping  people  lying  about 
on  coffee  sacks  or  boxes  of  merchandise. 

"  But  it  was  not  only  the  native  inhabitants  who  were 
addicted  to  these  unthrifty  habits  and  easy  ways,  the  foreign 
population  did  the  same  ;  and  I  was  accustomed  to  berate 
them  all. 

"  'There  never  was  a  land  so  unworthy  of  its  inhabitants,'  " 
said  I  one  day  to  the  British  consul. 

"  '  My  friend,'  said  he,  '  how  old  are  you  in  this  country  ? ' 

"  '  Not  three  months  yet,'  said  I  ;  '  but  I  have  lived  as  much 
in  those  three  months  as  your  people  do  in  as  many  years.' 

"  '  My  German  friend,  when  you  have  lived  here  six  months, 
if  you  should  live  as  many,  you  will  be  wiser.  Your  blood 
will  have  to  grow  thinner,  and  the  change  will  come  to  you 
with  a  shock  some  day  if  you  don't  get  a  sombrero,  and  avoid 
the  noontide  sun.  People  sleep  twice  a  day  here.  We  have 
two  nights  every  day  —  one  of  them  is  night  of  the  shade  at 
noon.' 

"  '  But  these  people  do  nothing,'  said  I. 

"  '  Providence  has  provided  that  they  shall  not  be  compelled 
to  work  hard,'  said  the  consul.      '  Look  around  you.' 

"  I  did  ;  there  were  cocoanut  palms  everywhere,  burning  in 
the  ail-.  Orange  trees  laden  with  fruit  were  bending  coolly 
over  the  fences  of  sugar-cane.  The  gardens  were  green 
with  sweet  potato  vines.  (  )n  the  hills  were  sugar  plantations. 
The  sea  was  full  of  fish.  The  sails  hung  loosely  over  the 
sleeping  forms  of  negroes  on  the  boats,  some  ol  which  were 
brown,  some  black,  but  all  of  whom  were  sleeping. 

"  Everywhere    were    water  jars  with    small    necks  and  big 


48  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

bodies,  and  the  lime  trees  seemed  to  be  as  numerous  as  the 
jars  in  the  corners  of  the  shadows. 

"  '  I  see,'  said  I,  'everybody  seems  to  be  asleep  on  the  land 
and  on  the  sea,  negroes  as  well  as  the  planters,  sailors  as  well 
as  the  white  pantalooned  masters  of  ships.  The  land  itself 
seems  to  be  resting.' 

" '  You  are  right,  my  German  friend,'  said  the  consul. 
'  The  whole  land  is  resting,  except  a  few  Americans.  They 
will  be  likely  to  find  a  long  siesta  soon.' 

"  A  great  strapping  negro  from  one  of  the  ships,  who  had 
been  in  the  States  and  among  the  islands  of  the  Antilles,  here 
showed  his  white  teeth,  and  ventured  to  remark, — 

"'It  am  no  use  to  buck  against  the  climate,  sir.  It  am  like 
going  for  a  mad  bull  with  a  red  rag,  sir  ;  bucking  against  the 
climate  don't  pay  in  these  parts,  sir.  The  person  who  does 
that  has  a  poor  show.' 

"  '  Oh,  go  about  your  work  and  don't  stand  there,  giant 
that  you  are,  wasting  your  time.  Bucking  against  the  climate, 
bucking  against  the  climate  ;   what  do  you  mean  by  that  ? ' 

"  'The  Americans  and  Germans  who  come  down  here,  all 
so  mighty  chipper  and  smart,  as  they  say,  and  who  begin  to 
feel  a  little  chilly  in  the  hot  sun,  and  to  drink  a  little  beer  and 
then  a  little  more,  a  little  brandy  and  then  a  little  more,  forget 
all  about  life  some  morning,  boss,  and  turn  up  their  toes  in  the 
night  in  the  unconsecrated  ground.' 

"I  glared  at  him.  lie  showed  his  white  teeth,  gave  a 
shrug  of  the  shoulders,  and  lolled  slowly  and  idly  away,  and 
sunk  down  among  his  own  people  in  a  huge  bower  of  green 
leaves  and  red  blooms,  where  parrots  were  scolding. 

"  The  port  doctor  passed  by. 


BUCKING    AGAINST    THE    CLIMATE.  49 

"'One  might  as  well  be  dead  as  to  try  to  live  in  such  a 
country  as  this,'  said  I.  '  Doctor,  it  is  high  noon,  and  you 
and  I  seem  to  be  the  only  people  who  are  awake.' 

"  '  And  I  would  not  be  awake  had  I  not  been  called  to  a 
case  of  fever.' 

"  '  What  was  the  cause  of  the  fever  ? '   asked  I. 

"  '  Bucking  against  the  climate,'  said  he. 

"  '  You  do  not  burden  yourself  with  scientific  terms,'  said 
I,  laughing. 

"  '  No,  not  at  this  time  of  day,'  he  answered.  '  The  climate 
forbids  much  exertion  of  the  mind.' 

"  He  passed  on,  holding  a  large  umbrella  over  his  head.  I 
did  not  carry  any  umbrella  in  my  customary  walks  in  the  mid- 
day sun. 

"  After  a  time  I  began  to  experience  a  cold  heat,  coming 
on  between  my  shoulder  blades.  My  body  ran  with  streams 
of  perspiration  that  came  from  some  unknown  fountain,  and 
yet  with  the  heat  there  would  come  a  slight  and  unaccount- 
able chilliness.  I  had  little  shivers  here  and  there,  when 
otherwise  I  seemed  to  be  melting.  My  head  felt  quecrly  at 
times,  my  mouth  was  dry,  and  my  tongue  turned  white. 
My  landlady  showed  some  alarm  at  these  disquieting  sensa- 
tions as  I  described  them  to  her. 

"One  night  I  went  to  my  bed  — -  a  good  solid  old  I  Eng- 
lish bed,  although  my  friends  had  advised  me  to  sleep 
in  a  hammock  at  a  late  hour.  The  thermometer  was  in 
the  nineties.  The  land  seemed  to  steam  with  heat,  and  the 
sea  lay  purple,  without  a  ripple. 

"  My  landlady  had  offered  me  some  cool  cocoanut  water 
before  retiring. 

E 


50  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  '  You  look  yellow  and  tired,'    she  said. 

"'No,'  said  I,  'that  is  too  tasteless  and  tame.  I  am  a 
temperance  man  at  home,  but  to-night  I  will  take  a  little 
brandy  and  some  ice  water,  not  as  a  beverage,  but  as  a 
medicine.' 

"  My  poor  landlady  shook  her  head.  But  I  followed  my 
own  counsel  and  prescription.  I  was  not  to  be  influenced 
by  the  examples  of  these  indolent  people. 

"When  I  woke  up,  not  on  the  next,  but  on  some  other 
morning,  I  seemed  to  be  in  a  very  strange  place. 

"  My  face  was  moist.  I  put  my  hand  up  to  it,  and  found 
that  it  was  covered  with  blood. 

"  My  heart  seemed  to  bound  when  I  found  blood  flowing 
from  my  nose,  ears,  eyes,  and  gurgling  in  my  mouth. 

"  The  doctor  of  whom  I  have  spoken  came  into  the  room 
hurriedly,  and  raising  his  hands,  exclaimed,  — 

"'Thank  God,  the  crisis  is  past;  you  are  bleeding;  it  is  a 
good  sign  ;  you  will  recover  ! ' 

"A  negro  girl  was  kneeling  at  the  foot  of  my  bed;  she 
seemed  to  be  praying. 

"  '  In  the  name  of  heaven,  doctor,  where  am  I  ?  what  is 
this  ? ' 

"  '  You  are  in  the  hospital,  my  friend.' 

"  '  How  came  I  here  ? ' 

"  'The  authorities  so  ordered,  my  friend.' 

"  '  Have  I  been  sick,  doctor?' 

"  '  For  some  days,  my  friend.' 

"  '  Have  I  been  unconscious  ? ' 

"  'That  question  is  for  you  to  answer,  my  friend.' 

"  '  What  is  the  matter  with  me,  doctor  ? ' 


BUCKING    AGAINST    THE    CLIMATE.  5  I 

"'Oh,  the  fever  —  the  usual  fever.  Your  life  has  been 
balancing,  but  the  danger  is  past  now,  provided  you  favor 
yourself  as  the  natives  here  do,  in  order  to  live.' 

"  '  What  was  the  cause  of  the  fever,  doctor  ? ' 

"  '  Oh,  the  usual  cause  in  the  case  of  new-comers  to  this 
country,  and  especially  of  Americans:  bucking  against  the 
climate,  sir,  bucking  against  the  climate.' 

"  I  now  follow  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  natives. 
I  carry  an  umbrella  in  the  morning',  drink  cocoanut  water 
in  the  evening,  and  rest  under  the  trees  in  the  noonday 
hours.  I  go  to  sleep  after  a  light  lunch  every  day,  hearing 
the  parrots  scold  on  my  way  to  dreamland,  and  waking  up 
when  the  trade-winds  begin  to  cause  the  waves  to  beat 
against  the  sands  under  the  cocoanut  groves. 

"  I  ride  a  little  donkey  in  the  cool  of  the  day,  holding  an 
umbrella  over  my  head.  I  sleep  in  a  hammock,  swinging  in 
the  open  air. 

"  I  do  not  worry.  I  recall  a  proverb  of  the  inhabitants, 
which  reads,  '  Think  not,  my  friend  ;  to  think  is  to  grow 
old.'  " 

The  young  German  had  a  poetic  sense,  and  he  had  come 
to  use  the  picturesque  language  of  the  country  very  much  in 
contrast  with  the  vocabulary  of  the  Northern  lands.  The 
tropics  make  new  words  for  the  pioneer. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

HAZEL  —  A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SNAKE. 

THE  young  German's  name  was  Hazel,  Frank  Hazel.  He 
was  slow  and  cautious  in  making  acquaintances,  but  he 
saw  that  the  Frobishers  were  true  people,  and  he  became 
greatly  attracted  to  Leigh.  He  was  a  lover  of  natural  his- 
tory, of  birds,  and  flowers,  as  many  German  students  are, 
and  when  he  heard  Leigh  describe  the  quetzal,  after  the 
manner  that  the  latter  had  read  of  it  and  studied  its  history 
in  books,  he  found  that  they  had  a  common  ground  of  tastes, 
and  cautious  as  he  was  he  liked  his  new  friend's  enthusi- 
asm. He  had  the  theory  that  the  ancient  races  of  these 
countries  were  Jews. 

They  grew  together  and  gave  themselves  up  to  each  other's 
company  on  the  boat,  which  had  stopped  at  Bocas  del  Toro, 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  places  on  the  coast. 

While  waiting  here  on  the  boat,  in  the  sunny,  purple  sea, 
Leigh  said  to  Mr.  Hazel,  the  young  Aleman,  — 

"  I  have  a  purpose  that  I  want  to  confide  to  you.  You 
may  smile  at  it,  but  I  am  a  Yankee,  as  New  England  people 
of  invention  are  called.  I  am  told  that  no  one  ever  was  able 
to  take  a  live  quetzal  to  the  States.  The  bird  is  so  delicate 
that  it  has  never  been  found  able  to  endure  confinement  and 
transportation.      Now,  Mr.  Hazel  —  " 

"Call  me  'young  Aleman,'  as  do  the  rest." 

52 


A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SNAKE.  53 

"  Well,  my  friend,  we  have  a  bird  house,  and  an  orchid 
house  in  the  old  town  of  Milton,  near  Boston,  and  I  have  set 
my  heart  on  securing  a  royal  quetzal,  a  real  peacock  trogon, 
a  true  bird  of  the  Aztecs,  the  most  splendid  of  all  the 
American  birds  of  paradise,  the  bird  of  the  sun,  of  legend, 
and  of  beauty ;  I  have  set  my  heart,  I  say,  on  securing 
such  a  bird,  and  taking  it  back  safely  to  our  orchid  house  on 
Milton  Hills." 

"You  Americans  do  many  things  that  seem  impossible," 
said  young  Aleman  ;  "  you  form  a  purpose  to  do  a  thing  and 
you  accomplish  it,  though  after  many  failures.  The  true 
royal  trogons  only  live  in  the  high  mountains,  and  they  are 
not  offered  for  sale,  except  perhaps  in  some  Indian  towns  or 
in  Guatemala. 

"  They  are  found  in  the  mountains  around  Cartago,  and 
two  naturalists  named  Underwood,  at  San  Jose,  who  prepared 
a  collection  of  birds  for  the  Guatemala  exposition,  and  are  pre- 
paring a  like  collection  for  the  exposition  to  be  held  in  Paris 
in  1900,  sometimes  offer  them  for  sale.  But  they  are  dead 
birds,  only  their  plumage  unmounted,  and  I  am  sure  that  the 
paradise  trogons  of  Cartago  are  the  true  birds  of  the  Aztecs. 
There  are  many  kinds  of  these  birds,  I  have  been  told." 

"  Could  not  the  hunters  who  secure  the  birds  for  the  natu- 
ralists Underwood  of  San  Jose  find  me  a  live  Aztec  trogon?" 
asked  Leigh.  He  added,  "  Xo,  I  would  not  trust  a  hunter  to 
handle  such  a  bird  ;  I  am  resolved  to  find  one  my  sell  ;  to 
secure  it,  and  bring  it  away,  and  to  make  the  adventure  and 
enterprise  all  my  own." 

"Have  you  any  conception  of  the  dangers  ot  a  tropical 
forest?"  asked  young   Aleman. 


54  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  I  have  read  that  there  are  dangers  in  the  hot  woods." 

"You  may  well  say  '  hot  woods,'  my  young  friend.  But  I 
am  free  to  confess  that  a  young  American's  idea,  like  a  bullet, 
will  find  itself  in  strange  places. 

"  My  friend,  I  once  knew  a  young  naturalist,  an  orchid 
hunter,  who  had  your  enthusiasm.  He  was  a  German,  but 
he  had  an  American  mind  and  heart,  lie  had  resolved  to 
find  a  certain  butterfly  orchid  which  he  had  heard  grew  in 
the  forests  on  the  slopes  of  Irazu.  He  came  to  my  farm  and 
we  made  a  home  for  him. 

"If  he  could  secure  this  particular  orchid,  it  would  bring 
him  a  round  sum  at  the  estates  of  a  German  baron.  This 
man  had  offered  purses  for  rare  orchids,  and  a  fixed  sum 
for  this  particular  parasite,  of  which  he  had  published  a 
description. 

"The  young  orchid  hunter's  name  was  Lotze. 

"  I  have  told  you  one  story  for  the  purpose  of  illustrating 
the  value  of  caution  in  the  tropical  countries.  Let  me  tell 
you  another  —  and  it  is  a  terrible  one.  Your  friends  may  be 
interested  in  it ;  it  has  a  very  useful  lesson,  in  my  view." 

Captain  Frobisher,  Alonzo,  and  Leigh  drew  their  sea  chairs 
close  to  Mr.  Hazel.  Old  Mr.  Hazel  and  Captain  Morris 
joined  them,  when  young  Aleman  related  the  following  thrill- 
ing story. 

THE  YOUNG  ORCHID  HUNTER  AND  THE  BLOOD  SNAKE. 

"I  shall  never  forget  young  Lotze;  his  imagination  was 
all  aglow,  and  his  heart  was  as  warm  and  responsive  as  his 
fancy.      He  was  a  graduate  of  a  botanical  school  in  Germany. 


A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SXAKE.  55 

Leigh,  here,  my  new  friend,  reminds  me  of  him.  Lotze's 
heart  seemed  to  all  go  into  an  orchid,  as  my  friend's  here 
seems  to  be  all  set  upon  a  certain  bird. 

"  Costa  Rica  is  the  land  of  orchids,  and  the  English  and 
German  hunters  go  there,  as  to  Venezuela  and  Surinam.  To 
find  a  new  orchid  of  any  wonderful  form  or  beauty  is  to 
secure  quite  a  little  sum,  so  ambitious  is  the  rivalry  among 
the  orchid  collectors  of  England  and  on  the  Continent. 
Many  English  and  German  students  go  to  the  American 
tropics  orchid  hunting;  but  I  have  never  met  one  who  had 
so  strong  a  passion   for  the  splendid  parasites  as   Lotze. 

"  I  came  to  love  the  boy.  I  saw  that  his  danger  was  in 
impulse  —  of  breaking  a  way  without  looking  before.  So 
when  he  came  to  my  little  coffee  farm,  I  tried  to  caution 
him  in  regard  to  the  dangers  of  exposure  to  certain  condi- 
tions of  the  climate,  as  I  have  you,  my  young  friend:  may 
you  never  meet  the  fate  of  poor  Lotze  ;  I  could  shed  tears 
for  him  now. 

"He  had  not  been  in  my  little  adobe  house  a  day  before 
he  showed  me  the  advertisement  of  the  German  baron,  of 
which   he   had   told   me  on   introduction,  and   said,  - 

"  '  It  is  mine,'  meaning  the  prize. 

"'A  rare  gem  among  flowers  it  must  be,'  said  I,  'and 
one  hard  to  find.  I  have  travelled  through  the  forest  with 
Indians,  hut  have  seen  nothing  resembling  it.' 

"  '  Hut  two  specimens  <>f  it  have  been  found  here,'  he  said, 
'and  the  baron  is  determined  that  his  collection  ol  orchids 
shall  not  be  surpassed  by  any  in  the  country,  II  I  can  find 
a  specimen  ol  it.  mv  lite  is  made.  It  would  give  me  a 
place  as   botanist  in   the   best  arboretums  and   botanical   <rar- 


56  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

dens.  If  I  could  find  that,  I  would  receive  a  commission  to 
travel  for  the  gems  of  flowers. 

"  '  Oh,  my  friend,'  he  continued,  and  I  see  his  eyes  glow 
now,  'others  seek  the  gems  of  the  mines;  I  have  a  passion 
for  the  gems  of  flowers,  as  some  do  for  the  feathered  gems 
of  the  air.' 

"I  recall  that  expression,  Leigh,  'the  feathered  gems  of 
the  air.'  lie  would  have  found  the  heart  of  a  brother  in 
you. 

"The  orchid  desired  was  one  of  the  many  butterfly  flowers, 
that  bore  a  perfect  resemblance  to  a  swarm  of  the  golden 
butterflies  of  the  tropics,  and  could  hardly  be  distinguished 
from  the  dazzling  insects. 

"  I  had  seen  many  kinds  of  insect  and  butterfly  orchids, 
but  none  that  bore  this  perfect  resemblance  to  the  butterfly 
of  the  sun. 

"  Lotze  hunted  the  forests  under  Irazu.  He  would  return 
after  long  explorations  with  an  Indian,  and  bring  back  won- 
derful specimens  of  the  flowers,  but  none  that  bore  a  perfect 
resemblance  to  the  golden  butterfly,  and  that  answered  the 
advertised  description   in  all  respects. 

"  It  was  a  pleasure  to  me  to  see  him  returning  at  night, 
his  little  mule  loaded  with  flowers.  He  ate  little;  he  pored 
over  the  flowers  that  he  had  collected  each  night  on  his 
return  ;   he  slept  among  the  blooms  and  dreamed  of  flowers. 

"He  made  long  journeys  into  the  low  tropical  parts  of 
Costa  Rica,  and  there  found  trees  covered  with  wonderful 
parasites. 

"  I  cautioned  him  against  certain  poisonous  snakes  and 
insects  that  abound  in  these  regions.      I   showed  him  speci- 


A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SNAKE.  57 

mens  of  the  coral  snake,  and  told  him  how  deadly  was  its 
bite,  how  that  even  the  negroes  were  sometimes  bitten  by 
them  in  gathering  bananas. 

"One  day  he  returned,  and,  before  he  reached  the  house, 
I  saw  him  throw  up  his  hands  and  exclaim,  — 

"  '  Eureka  ! ' 

"  As  he  came  up  to  the  veranda,  he  called  out,  — 

"'Hazel,  you  must  go  with  me  to-morrow;  I  have  found 
it,  and  my  life  is  made.' 

"  He  did  not  sleep  that  night,  as  he  told  me  he  lived  in  the 
air,  in  waking  dreams. 

"  We  set  off  together  in  the  morning,  for  I  could  not  resist 
his  enthusiasm  when  he  insisted  that  I  should  go  with  him. 

"After  hours  of  travel  on  muleback,  we  came  to  a  tall 
palm  in  the  midst  of  giant  trees.  The  palm  was  very  old, 
and  had  fallen  partly,  so  that  it  leaned  against  the  lianas  of 
an  adjoining  tree,  and  formed  a  bough  with  it.  Down  from 
this  high  tangle  fell  a  long  stem,  and  on  this  stem  was  a 
flower  which  a  traveller  would  have  mistaken  for  a  golden 
butterfly  or  a  swarm  of  butterflies. 

"  '  See,'  said  he,  '  it  has  all  the  lines.  My  eyes  are  sharp, 
and  I  can  see  them.  I  will  not  trust  the  Indian  to  bring  it 
down,  I  will  go  for  it  myself.  Let  the  Indian  follow  me  with 
his  machete.      I  must  bring  the  wood  away  with  the  flower.' 

"The  point  at  which  the  ancient  palm  had  fallen  against  the 
lianas  of  the  great  tree  was  not  very  high.  l.ot/.e  gave  me 
a  look,  full  of  the  spirit  of  triumph.  He  drew  himself  up  a 
liana  into  the  trunk  of  the  great  tree,  as  he  could  best  reach 
the  palm  in  this  way. 

"He  stood  in  the  trunk  of   the  immense  tree,  gazing  at  the 


58  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

orchid  which  was  swaying  in  the  light  wind,  like  a  very- 
shower  of  gems  suspended  in  the  air. 

"  Suddenly  I  saw  something  yellow  roll  over  at  his  feet. 
It  coiled  and  uncoiled,  it  was  reddish  yellow,  and  I  recog- 
nized the  terrible  form. 

"'Lotze!'  called  I,  'jump!  jump  down!     Quick!' 

"  He  did  not  obey.  He  stepped  around  in  the  dead  trunk 
of  the  tree. 

"  Suddenly  he  looked  down,  and  threw  his  hand  up  to  his 
head. 

"  '  It  makes  me  dizzy  to  see  it,'  he  said. 

"'Jump!'  said  I.  'Jump  down!  You  are  in  danger.  I 
have  seen  something !  ' 

"  He  dropped  upon  the  ground. 

"  '  It  makes  me  feverish,'  he  said.  '  I  am  dazed  with  joy, 
I  have  sought  for  it  so  long  ! ! 

"  He  turned  his  eyes  to  the  glimmering  orchid,  then  looked 
towards  me  and  said,  — 

"  '  Something  stung  me  on  my  foot  in  the  tree.' 

"  It  was  as  I  had  feared.  I  had  taken  brandy  with  me.  I 
brought  it  to  him. 

"  '  Drink  !  '  said  I. 

"'Drink?'  said  he,  'with  that  orchid  in  view!  Drink 
that  stuff  — -  never  ! ' 

"His  face  turned  red.  His  arms,  hands,  and  feet  turned 
red.      He  began  to  bleed  from  all  the  pores  of  his  skin. 

"  '  I  am  in  agony  !  '  he  cried.  '  I  am  going  mad  !  What 
has  happened  ?  ' 

"  '  You  have  been  bitten,'  said  I.  '  Such  things  have  been 
before.     You  must  drink  ! ' 


A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SXAKE.  59 

"  '  What,'  said  he,  'drink  brandy,  with  that  gem  of  the  sun 


in  view  —  no,  no,  never 


"  Every  pore  was  now  oozing  with  blood.  He  was  covered 
with  blood.  His  veins  were  being  emptied.  His  blood  as 
it  were  was  fleeing  from  his  body. 

"  '  You  must  drink  or  die,'  said  I. 

" '  I  can't  drink  —  I  have  made  my  life.  See,  see  the 
orchid  ! '      He  added,  — 

"  '  Oh,  how  I  suffer  !     What  makes  me  bleed  ? ' 

"  His  body  was  being  rapidly  reduced.  His  blood  was 
separating  from  it. 

"The  Indian  saw  the  situation.  He  rushed  towards  the 
tree  with  his  machete  and  dealt  a  powerful  blow  on  the  place 
in  the  tree  where  poor  Lotze  had  stood.  A  shining  yellow- 
ish coil  rolled  down  the  trunk.      Lotze  saw  it. 

"  '  The  blood  snake  ! '  he  cried.  '  Let  me  have  the  brandy. 
Oh,  that  this  should  happen  now  when  I  have  made  my 
life  ! ' 

"  He  turned  his  eyes  on  the  orchid  swinging  down  under 
the  green  sea  of  leaves  in  the  glimmering  air.  Presentlv 
his  eyes  rolled  back,  and  the  vision  of  the  orchid  forever 
disappeared  — he  was  dead." 

Leigh  looked  serious. 

"  My  boy,"  said  Hazel,  "you  must  learn  to  go  slow  in  this 
country,  and  so  you  may  go  farther.  There  are  other  dan- 
gers in  those  seeming  paradises  of  orchids  and  trogons  be- 
side the  blood  snake,  and  such  are  as  subtle,  and  that  a 
stranger  is  not  expected  to  know. 

"The  eye  ol  our  Indian  orchid  hunter  would  have  looked 
down   before  every  movement   in  a  tree   like   that.      It  would 


60  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

have  been  placed  on  his  feet.  Lotze's  eye  was  fixed  on  the 
orchid." 

"  I  thank  you  for  that  story,"  said  Captain  Frobisher.  "  It 
is  a  needed  story,  I  am  sure.  Leigh,  remember  that  story 
when  you  go  into  the  woods.  I  fear  for  you.  You  are  im- 
pulsive. Your  eye  is  on  the  orchid  and  not  on  your  feet,  nor 
on  the  way  to  the  orchid." 

"  Don't  distrust  me,  uncle.  You  may  be  sure  that  I  will 
never  invite  any  danger  like  that." 

"  My  young  friend,"  said  Hazel,  "the  blood  snake,  whose 
bite  causes  all  the  victim's  blood  to  flow  out  of  his  body,  is, 
as  I  have  hinted,  only  one  of  a  hundred  dangers  in  a  tropical 
forest,  and  one  with  your  quick  impulses  and  fancy  will  be 
sure  to  find  some  of  them,  as  you  will  see." 

"  May  we  never  see  any  harm  happen  to  Leigh,"  said 
Captain  Morris. 

"  I  wish  to  make  an  excursion  into  the  native  forests,"  said 
Leigh.      "  How  can  I  do  so  safely  ?  " 

"  Go  with  the  rubber  hunters ;  they  will  be  faithful  to  you. 
What  do  you  most  wish  to  see  ?  " 

"  The  rarest  birds,  the  most  curious  animals,  and  the  most 
beautiful  flowers." 

"  The  rubber  hunters  have  eyes  for  such  sights  as  these," 
said  Captain  Morris.  "  It  is  a  part  of  their  trade.  They  see 
things  where  other  eyes  fail.  Go  with  them,  go  with  them, 
and  you  will  never  cease  to  wonder  at  what  you  see  as  long 
as  you  live." 

Leigh's  eyes  gleamed  in  view  of  such  an  excursion. 

"  You  need  not  be  afraid  to  trust  him  to  the  rubber  hunt- 
ers," continued  Captain  Morris,  turning  to  Captain  hrobisher. 


A  STORY  OF  THE  BLOOD  SNAKE.  6l 

"I  never  knew  one  of  them  to  meet  with  an  accident,  or  to 
prove  treacherous  to  any  traveller.  You  have  little  idea  what 
a  wonderful  country  this  is  -what  natural  gardens,  and  me- 
nageries, and  unexpected  things  of  all  kinds  can  be  seen  in 
the  tropical  forests.  Let  Leigh  find  a  company  of  rubber 
hunters,  and  go  with  them  on  one  of  their  excursions.  These 
people  know  all  of  the  forest  ways,  all  of  the  animals,  birds, 
insects,  and  flowers." 

Leigh  listened  eagerly. 

"Will  you  let  me  join  the  rubber  hunters  for  a  trip  with 
them  ?  "  asked  Leigh,  of  his  uncle. 

"Well,  I  will  see,"  said  Captain  Frobisher.  "I  would  not 
like  to  trust  you  where  I  would  not  go  myself.  I  will  think 
of  the  matter  when  we  come  to  know  more  of  the  country." 

"You  might  trust  yourself  with  perfect  safety  to  the 
rubber  hunters,"  said  Captain  Morris.  "  If  you  met  with  any 
accident,  the  fault  would  be  your  own." 

"That  is  the  point,"  said  Captain  Frobisher  to  Captain  Mor- 
ris. "  I  would  not  fear  that  any  harm  would  come  to  Leigh  from 
the  rubber  hunters  ;  but  he  is  an  impulsive  boy  ;  he  acts,  and 
thinks  aftenvards  when  he  is  under  excitement,  and  I  think 
that  he  would  be  likely  to  become  excited  amid  the  won- 
ders of  a  tropical  forest;  and  while  I  would  expect  no  danger 
to  come  to  him  from  his  company,  I  would  not  be  quite  so  sure 
that  harm  would  not  come  to  him  from  himself.  It  is  Leigh 
that  would  be  likely  to  lead  Leigh  into  danger,  and  in  ways 
for  which  his  companions  could  not  be  responsible.  Hut  I 
am  inclined  to  let  the  boy  have  a  chance  t<>  sec  the  wild  lite 
of  the  forest  in  the  manner  that  you  recommend." 

Leigh  clapped  his  hands  on    his    knees,  and  iroin  that  time 


62  LOST    IX    NICARAGUA. 

he  began  to  dream  of  excursions  among  the  rubber  trees  with 
the  rubber  hunters,  whoever  these  people  might  be.  He  did 
not  tell  the  captain  that  he  had  heard  but  little  of  these  cu- 
rious people  before.  lie  began  to  inquire  about  them,  and 
about  the  rubber  trees,  and  the  life  of  the  birds  and  animals 
among  them. 

He  began  to  study  the  country,  by  asking  questions  of  all 
whom  he  chanced  to  meet.  Que  cs  eso?  was  a  key  to  treas- 
uries of  wonders.  He  sought  for  stories  as  for  orchids  in  the 
orchid  land.  Stories  are  the  histories  of  a  country ;  they 
picture  everything, — the  past,  the  future,  the  present,  the 
manners,  and  the  customs,  and  the  heart  of  the  people. 
Stories  are  an  education. 


CHAPTER    V. 


A    VERY    ODD    STORY 


-THE    WASHINGTON    OF    CENTRAL 
AMERICA. 


THE  young  German  Hazel  invited  Captain   Frobisher  and 
Alonzo  and  Leigh  to  accompany  him  to  his  coffee  plan- 
tation, a  few  miles  from  Cartago  and  San  Jose. 

"  I  live  simply,"  he  said.  "  I  am  compelled  to  do  so  if 
my  business  is  to  grow,  and  most  people  do  so  here.  But 
my  table,  my  mules,  and  such  rooms  as  I  have  will  be  at 
your  service.  You  may  have  to  sleep  on  hard  beds  or  in 
hammocks.  You  will  not  find  my  one  story  adobe  house, 
with  tiles  on  the  roof  and  the  umbrellas  of  cocoanut  palms 
over  it.  an  American  hotel  ;  but  you  shall  share  my  heart, 
my  good  will,  and  all  of  my  seven  years'  experience.  Alonzo, 
you  can  study  a  small  cocoanut  farm  there,  and  you,  Leigh, 
may  find  quetzals  in  the  forests,  of  that  I  cannot  say.  I 
have  never  hunted  lor  them,  but  the  books  on  ornithology 
say  that  they  are  there,  and  true  ones,  though  not  as  splendid 
as  those  of  Guatemala.  Captain  Frobisher,  you  shall  sit  and 
dream  there,  and  eat  bananas  and  plantains,  pine-apples 
and  oranges,  and  drink  cocoanut  water,  and  sum  up  lite,  and 
learn  as  far  as  I  can  show  you  whether  it  would  be  best  tor 
you  to  invest  in  a  coffee  farm  or  banana  plantation  for  one 
oi    your  boys." 

63 


64  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"My  clear  Hazel,"  said  Captain  Frobisher,  "we  accept 
your  invitation.  Only  1  am  an  independent  now  and  I 
must  pay  you,  and  pay  you  well  for  all  that  you  will  do 
for  us.  You  will  give  us  that  which  is  more  than  money, 
and  this  rare  experience  of  yours  we  shall  appreciate." 

They  stopped  a  few  days  longer  at  Port  Limon,  as  young 
Hazel  had  to  await  some  farming  utensils  there  which  were 
to  arrive  on  an   Atlas  steamer  from   New  York. 

Their  hotel  was  situated  between  the  clashing  sea  and  the 
mountains.  It  seemed  full  of  adventurers.  This  brought 
a  new  view  to  our  travellers. 

The  captain  of  the  ship  joined  the  party  at  the  hotel.  He 
was  to  remain  a  few  days  in  town,  and  he  seemed  to  like 
Captain  Frobisher,  his  nephews,  and  the  young  German 
coffee  planter. 

One  evening,  as  they  sat  on  one  of  the  verandas  of  the 
hotel,  a  nervous  young  woman  passed  by.  She  looked  up 
to  the  captain,  and  seemed  to  shrink  up,  to  wither,  as  it 
were.     She  gave  him  a  second  glance  and  darted  away. 

"I  know  that  woman,"  said  the  captain.  "She  is  an  ad- 
venturess. You  are  not  only  to  avoid  malaria,  and  poisonous 
things  here,  but  adventurers.  You  have  told  some  stories," 
he  said  to  young  Hazel,  "in  regard  to  things  to  be  avoided 
in  this  country.  The)'  are  good  lessons  for  our  friends.  I 
could  relate  one  to  match  yours.  Hut  instead  of  doing  that, 
1  will  give  you  the  moral  without  the  story,  —  beware  of 
adventurers  in  this  country  —  people  who  come  into  your 
experience  unexpectedly  and  vanish." 

The  good  captain  having  raised  our  expectation  for  a 
story  and   disappointed  it,  was  asked   to  relate  some  of  the 


THE  HOUSE  OF  THE  DWARF.  65 

popular  tales  of  the  country,      tie  did  so,  and  one  of  these 
we  will  call  — 

THE    STRANGE    STORY    OF    THE    HOUSE    OF    THE    DWARF. 

"There  lived  an  old  woman  in  Uxmal,  who  went  about 
in  agitation  and  mourning. 

"  '  Woe  is  me,'  she  said.  '  Age  has  overtaken  me,  and 
I  have  no  children.  The  withered  stalk  does  not  bloom 
again,  and  I  never  will  be  young  again.      Woe,  woe  is  me  ! ' 

"  She  became  more  wrinkled  and  withered  and  her  dis- 
tress grew. 

"She  lived  in  a  hut  that  became  a  palace  and  a  temple 
and  a  wonder  of  the  Indian  world;  but  it  is  too  soon  to 
speak  of  that  transformation   now. 

"  One  day  as  she  was  passing  to  and  fro  in  her  wretched 
room,  in  her  usual  tremor  and  agitation,  she  found  an 
egg  on  her  table.  She  said:  'What  is  that?  How  came 
it  here?      It  is  as  large  as  an   eagle's.' 

"  She  took  it,  wrapped  a  cloth  around  it,  and  put  it  into 
the  warm  corner  of  her  room,  from  which  the  influence  of 
the  sun's  heat   was  never  absent  day   or  night. 

"  Kvery  day  she  unrolled  the  cloth,  until  weeks  had  passed, 
when  one  day,  wonder  of  wonders,  instead  ol  finding  an 
egg  in  the  warm  cloth,  she  found  there  a  criatiira,  or  a  little 
boy  bah)'. 

"The  old  woman  danced  for  joy.  She  fondled  it  and  gave 
all  her  time  to  it,  and  it  grew  one  year  and  then  its  growth 
stopped.      It   was   a  dwarf. 

"  \ow  to  be  a  dwarf  was  a  sign  ol  wisdom.  The  old 
woman    was   more   delighted   than   ever. 


66  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  '  It  will  be  a  lord,'  she  said. 

"  Years  passed,  but  the  dwarf  grew   no  taller. 

"One  day  the  old  woman   said   to  him:  — 

"'Go  to  the  house  of  the  Governor  and  make  a  trial  of 
your  strength  with  the  Governor.  See  which  of  you  can 
lift  the  most.' 

"The  heart  of  the  dwarf  melted,  and  the  boy  began  to  cry. 

"'Go,'  said  the  old  woman.  'The  time  is  come  for  us 
to  find  out  who  you  are.' 

"  The  boy  obeyed  and  made  his  challenge  to  the  Governor, 
who  was  a  giant  of  a  man. 

"The  Governor  laughed  at  him,  and  brought  him  a  stone 
of  seventy-five  pounds  to  lift.  'I  can  lift  that,'  he  said. 
'  Let  me   see  you   lift  the  stone.' 

"The  dwarf  looked  at  it  and  began  to  cry,  and  ran  out  of 
the  palace  and  home  to  his  mother. 

"'Go  back,  go  back,'  said  the  old  woman.  'Tell  the 
Governor  that  he  must  lift  the  stone  first,  and  that  you  will 
lift  it  afterward.     Go.' 

"  The  dwarf  returned  to  the  palace,  and  said  to  the 
Governor,  — 

"  '  If  you  will  lift  the  stone  first,  I  will  lift  it  after  you.' 

"  The  giant  lifted  the  stone. 

"Then  the  little  dwarf  did  the  same. 

" '  I  can  lift  a  heavier  stone  than  that,'  said  the  Gov- 
ernor.     He  did   so,  but  the  dwarf  did   the  same. 

"  '  You  rogue,'  said  the  Governor,  '  I  will  punish  you  for 
these  tricks.  You  mock  me.  Now,  hark  ye,  the  Governor's 
house  should  be  the  tallest  in  the  place.  If  you  can  lift 
so   well,   you   can   build    a   house    taller  than    all   the    others, 


THE    HOUSE    OF    THE    DWARF.  6j 

and  if  you  do  not  do  this,  then  I  will  sever  your  little  head 
from  your  little  body,  and  will  have  done  with  you.' 

"The  dwarf  ran  home  to  the  old  woman  as  fast  as  he 
could  go,  crying",  — 

"  '  O  mother,  foster  mother,  the  Governor  commands  me 
to  build  him   a  house  higher  than  all  the  others.' 

" '  You  can  do  it,'  said  the  old  woman.  '  Go  to  work 
now.' 

"The  dwarf  went  to  work  at  once.  He  worked  all  night, 
and  turned  a  stone  heap  into  a  pyramid.  (This  story  should 
be  true,  for  the  pyramid  is  still  pointed  out  to  those  who  have 
faith  in  magic  gifts  and  powers.) 

"  The  next  morning  the  Governor  went  to  the  door  of  his 
palace,  and  his  eyes  grew  big  as  he  saw  the  sun  rising  be- 
hind a  pyramid. 

"  He  sent  for  the  dwarf. 

'"You  little  rogue,'  he  exclaimed,  'you  have  mocked  me 
again.  But  I  will  be  even  with  you  yet.  Go  and  get  some 
bundles  of  sticks  of  cogoiol  wood  (a  very  hard  wood).  Fetch 
me  two  bundles.  You  shall  beat  me  over  the  head  with  the 
sticks  out  of  one  bundle,  and  I  will  beat  you  from  the  sticks 
of  the  other.' 

"The  dwarf  ilew  home  to  the  old  woman,  crying  as 
before. 

"'My  son,  do  as  the  Governor  bids  you.  Hut  first  wait  a 
little,  and  I  will  make  some  dough  of  hard  meal,  and  put  it 
on  your  head  and  fit  it  there  under  the  covering.' 

"So  she  made  a  cake,  a  tortilla  <lc  trigo,  and  moulded  it 
in  to  the  top  of  his  head,  and  covered  it  over,  and  sent  him 
out  to  gather  the  two  bundles  ol  hard  sticks. 


68  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"The  Governor  called  his  lords  and  guards  to  witness  the 
contest  in  which  he  expected  to  end  the  dwarf. 

"  He  beat  the  dwarf  over  the  head  with  all  the  sticks  in 
the  bundle,  but  the  little  fellow  only  laughed  at  him. 

"  Then  the  dwarf  whipped  up  a  stick  out  of  his  bundle,  and 
broke  the  Governor's  head  at  the  second  blow,  so  the  Gover- 
nor fell  down  dead.  The  lords  hailed  the  dwarf  as  Governor, 
and  so  he  became  the  King  of  Uxmal. 

"The  old  woman  died.  Her  spirit  went  into  a  cave  near 
Merida.  She  sells  water  there,  sitting  under  a  tree.  She 
keeps  a  serpent,  not  an  evil  serpent,  but  one  of  wisdom,  by 
her  side.  I  have  never  seen  a  traveller  who  met  her,  but 
have  talked  with  some  who  have  visited  the  ruins  of  the 
House  of  the  Dwarf." 

A  picture  of  General  Francisco  Morazan  hung  in  the  office 
of  the  hotel.  Leigh  inquired  of  the  captain  who  this  hero 
was,  and  what  deeds  or  principles  had  made  him  conspicuous. 

The  captain  answered  the  questions  by  a  useful  narrative, 
which  we  give. 

THE  WASHINGTON  OF  CENTRAL  AMERICA. 

If  America  has  more  than  one  Washington,  Francisco 
Morazan  (mo-rah-than)  has  earned  a  place  among  the  heroes 
of  liberty  who  may  be  associated  with  that  great  name. 
Simon  Bolivar  has  been  called  the  Washington  of  South 
American  independence.  General  San  Martin,  in  achieve- 
ments and  in  personal  character,  merits  the  title  of  the  Wash- 
ington of  Argentina,  Chili,  and  Peru — the  Washington  of 
the  Andes.     He  not  only  carried  the  Banner  of  the  Sun  over 


THE    WASHINGTON    OF    CENTRAL    AMERICA.  69 

the  Andes,  and  won  liberty  for  the  empire  of  the  South  Tem- 
perate Zone,  but  his  motto  of  personal  character  was, — 
"  Thou  must  be  that  which  thou  oughtest  to  be,  else  thou 
shalt  be  nothing"  (Scras  lo  que  debes  ser,  y  sino  scras  nadd). 

Francisco  Morazan  was  born  in  Tegucigalpa,  Honduras, 
in  1799.  He  was  of  French  descent,  and  was  educated  by 
the  priesthood. 

The  struggle  for  the  independence  of  his  country,  which 
was  achieved  in  182 1,  made  him  a  patriot.  He  entered 
into  the  cause  with  the  fervor  of  his  French  blood.  Liberty 
was  his  native  air,  and  his  heart  throbbed  in  sympathy  with 
human  rights  and  welfare. 

Ilcrrera,  the  President  of  Honduras,  took  him  into  the 
council  of  state,  and  the  people  elected  him  as  a  representa- 
tive to  the  legislative  body. 

When  Honduras,  in  1827,  was  invaded  by  Guatemala, 
Morazan,  young  as  he  was,  led  the  state  troops  against 
them.  He  was  taken  prisoner,  but  escaped  to  Nicaragua, 
where  he  was  induced  to  take  command  ot  a  force  at  Leon  for 
the  liberation  of  his  own  country,  —  Honduras  and  Salvador. 

He  was  looked  upon  as  the  leader  of  the  forces  ot  libera- 
tion. His  march  was  a  triumph.  He  liberated  Honduras, 
and  was  made  President  of  the  Republic,  and  defeated  the 
Guatemalan   army   in    Salvador  in    1828. 

The  young  general  united  the  troops  of  Honduras  and 
Salvador  and  invaded  Guatemala.  lie  was  defeated,  but 
recovered,   and   captured   Guatemala   City. 

He  was  now  the  recognized  leader  <it  liberty  and  progress 
in  Central  America.  He  became  a  liberal,  compelled  the 
ecclesiastics  to  obey  the  state  in  civil   things,  and   confiscated 


JO  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

the  property  of  the  orders  that  resisted  the  will  of  the 
people. 

Carrcra  of  Guatemala  became  a  conservative,  and  received 
the  influence  of  the  aristocratic  party.  The  two  generals 
representing  different  ideas  of  democracy  found  themselves 
face  to  face  on  the  battlefield.  Morazan  was  finally  defeated 
in  Guatemala.  lie  went  to  Peru  and  raised  an  army  of  pa- 
triots, among  whom  were  many  Central  American  refugees, 
and,  returning  to  Central  America,  invaded  Costa  Rica  in 
1842,  was  victorious,  and  was  made  the  executive  of  the 
republic. 

He  now  became  the  apostle  of  Central  American  union, 
under  the  model  of  the  government  of  the  United  States.  He 
was  preparing  to  march  through  the  country  for  the  purpose 
of  creating  a  United  States  of  Central  America,  with  equal 
rights  for  all  people,  when  he  was  defeated  by  a  local 
revolt,  and  was  shot  at  San  Jose,  September  15,  1842.  His 
name  stands  for  Liberty  and  Union,  and  his  political  dreams 
are  likely  to  be  fulfilled. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  THIRD  AMERICA:  HOW  TO  REACH  IT  FROM  NEW  YORK. 

THE  tropical  lands  between  the  two  great  divisions  of 
America,  known  as  Central  America,  promise  a  great 
future  among  the  productive  regions  of  the  earth.  The 
coffee  growing,  the  coca,  the  bananas,  the  orange,  and  other 
tropical  fruit  arc  probably  to  be  developed  there  with  great 
profit  to  the  planters,  as  the  ports  of  these  productions  are 
near  to  those  of  the  United  States.  The  Central  American 
republics,  five  in  number, —  Guatemala,  Honduras,  San  Salva- 
dor, Nicaragua,  and  Costa  Rica,  —  seem  destined  to  form  one 
central  republic,  and  to  increase  in  population  and  wealth 
with  material  development  and  progress.  The  coast  is 
unhealthy,  but  the  highlands,  as  in  South  America,  are 
among  the  most  desirable  parts  of  the  world. 

A  fraternal  congress  of  these  republics  assembled  in  the 
city  of  San  Salvador  in  September,  1889,  and  concluded  a 
treat}-  of  union.  The  federation  of  the  five  states  was 
named  Centko  America,  and  this  unison  was  to  continue 
for  a  provisional  term  of  five  years,  being  brought  to  an  end 
in  the  year  1900,  when  it  was  expected  a  federal  constitution' 
would  be  lormed  and  proclaimed. 

This  compact  was  in  part  broken  by  the  war  between 
San   Salvador  and   Guatemala,  followed  by  other  revolutions. 

71 


J2  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  ideal,  however,  did  not  fail.  A  partial  union  was 
formed,  and  the  complete  and  harmonious  federation  of  the 
republics  seems  only  to  be  a  question  of  time. 

Another  ideal  among  the  progressive  men  of  this  country 
rose  and  fell,  but  brought  into  the  progressive  education  of 
the  country  a  suggestion  which  promises  in  time  to  succeed. 
In  1886,  under  the  leadership  of  ancient  Guatemala,  a  con- 
gress was  held  for  advancing  a  scheme  of  federation  on  the 
principle  that  all  disputes  between  the  states  should  be  set- 
tled by  arbitration.  Such  reforms  as  this  do  not  come  sud- 
denly, and  are  disturbed  if  they  come  too  soon.  We  may 
expect  to  see  a  united  and  a  pacific  republic,  formed  on 
advanced  ideas,  rise  on  the  shores  of  the  American  Mediter- 
ranean, and  the  opportunities  which  this  land  of  the  future 
will  open  to  agriculture  and  trade  are  a  very  interesting  study. 
The  future  republic  will  be  American  in  race  and  spirit,  and 
form  a  part  of  the  highway  between  both  worlds. 

Steamships  multiply  between  the  ports  of  the  United 
States  and  Central  America.  Some  of  these  are  fine  pas- 
senger steamers,  but  many  of  them  are  fruit  boats.  Five 
English  steamers  go  to  Balise,  and  the  passengers  there  may 
enjoy  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  the  intertropical  hotels. 

The  steamer  lines  from  New  Orleans  offer  most  delightful 
excursions  to  Port  Limon.  Fruit  steamers  from  Mobile  and 
other  southern  ports  present  an  easy  route  to  Central  Amer- 
ica, and  a  very  desirable  one  to  those  interested  in  the 
productions  of  the  tropical  country.  The  Peddie  Trading 
Company,  New  York,  despatch  steamers  to  the  northern 
Central  American  ports. 

The  circulars,  or  rather  pamphlets,  of  the  Atlas  Company 


THE    THIRD     AMERICA  :     HOW    TO    REACH     IT.  J  $ 

give  some  delightful  pen  pictures  of  the  southern  Central 
American  ports.  Those  of  Port  Limon  and  San  Jose  are 
particularly  pleasing,  as  is  the  information  in  regard  to 
Kingston  and  Cartagena,  and  the  republics  of  Honduras  and 
Guatemala. 

There  is  an  increasing  interest  in  travel  to  these  ports. 
The  star  of  new  immigrations  turns  southward.  The  immi- 
gration to  South  America  is  becoming  greater  than  to  North 
America,  and  in  this  new  march  of  destiny  Central  America 
is  to  share. 

Among  these  multiplying  routes  are:  — 

To  Costa  Rica  (Port  Limon,  port  of  San  Jose).  The  port 
is  reached  from  New  York,  a  distance  of  2865  miles,  by 
Pacific  Mail  steamer  to  Colon,  thence  by  the  Royal  Mail  or 
German  line;  nine  days;  fare  about  S120.00.  A  railroad 
connects  Port  Limon  with  San  Jose.  The  port  is  more 
direct!}'  reached  by  some  of  the  steamers  of  the  licet  of  the 
Atlas  Line  Steamship  Company,  of  which  we  shall  speak 
again  ;   fare  about  $80.00. 

It  is  reached  from  New  Orleans,  a  distance  of  1350  miles, 
in  nine  days;   fare  S50.00. 

Puntarenas  on  the  Pacific  side  is  reached  from  San  Fran- 
cisco ;    2793  miles  ;    fare  about  $80.00. 

Nicaragua  is  reached  by  steamers  both  from  Mobile  and 
New  Orleans,  the  former  steamers  going  to  Hluefields.  The 
fare  to  Hluefields,  a  great  fruit  port,  from  New  Orleans  is 
about  S40.OO. 

Cape  Gracias  a  Dios  is  reached  by  steamers  from  New 
York,  at  a  fare  of  about  $70.00. 

Corinto  on  the  Pacific  side,  2685  miles  from  San  Francisco, 


74  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

is  reached  from  the  latter  port  in  about  eighteen  days,  at  a 
fare  a  little  rising  $100.00.  This  port  connects  with  the 
great  lakes.  Managua,  the  capital,  is  reached  by  steamer 
to  Corinto,  rail  to  Leon,  and  by  rail  and  lake  steamers. 

Greytown  is  one  of  the  interesting  passenger  ports  from 
the  east,  and  is  reached  by  many  lines  of  steamers.  The 
landing  there  is  somewhat  perilous.  The  port  is  2810  miles 
from  New  York,  and  the  fare  is  about  $80.00.  Steamers 
leave  Greytown  for  Granada,  on  Lake  Nicaragua,  every  four 
days.  These  connect  by  rail  and  steamer  with  Managua,  the 
capital,  where  there  is  a  lake  route  to  the  Pacific  coast,  of 
which  the  port  is  Corinto. 

Honduras  is  reached  by  the  English  and  American  steam- 
ers to  Balise,  Champerico,  Guatemala,  in  sixteen  days  from 
New  York,  and  eleven  days  from  San  Francisco,  by  several 
lines  of  steamers ;  the  boats  from  the  east  by  Panama. 
Livingston,  Guatemala,  2495  miles  from  New  York,  is 
reached  in  seven  days,   at  a  fare  of  about  $70.00. 

The  Roval  Mail  line  of  steamers  despatches  a  boat  from 
New  Orleans  to  Livingston  every  Thursday,  at  a  fare  of 
$30.00.     Time,  six  days. 

When  Central  America  shall  become  the  gateway  of  the 
Pacific,  there  must  be  a  great  growth  of  the  port  cities  on 
the  western  coast,  such  as  Callao.  San  Francisco,  and  most 
of  the  ports  from  Valparaiso  to  Seattle,  as  well  as  ports  in 
Lower  California,  may  then  be  developed. 

Columbus  dreamed  of  reaching  the  "mouth  of  the  Ganges" 
by  the  way  of  Central  America,  and  though  the  "mouth  of 
the  Ganges"  is  far  indeed  from  where  he  supposed  it  to  be, 
his  dream,  in  effect,  is  likely  to  be  fulfilled. 


THE     THIRD     AMERICA  :     HOW    TO    REACH     IT.  75 

We  are  told  of  the  terrible  swamps  through  which  Nunez 
de  Balboa  forced  his  way  when  he  came  to  discover  the 
Pacific  from  the  peak  of  Darien.  Columbus  had  dreamed 
of  a  strait  between  the  central  land  and  India,  and  such  a 
strait  Balboa  hoped  to  find.  It  was  sought  long  by  many 
navigators,  but  it  did  not  appear. 

Then  enterprise  determined  that  such  a  waterway  should 
be  made  ;  France  lavished  tremendous  wealth  on  a  scheme 
to  build  a  canal  across  Panama,  but  the  work  is  arrested. 
Ever  since  the  Central  American  states  asserted  their  inde- 
pendence, schemes  for  a  canal  between  the  Caribbean  and 
the  Pacific  have  been  formed  and  agitated.  Of  these  the 
Nicaragua  Canal  promises  ultimate  success. 

There  are  few  more  interesting  places  in  the  world  than 
the  proposed  route  of  the  Nicaraguan  Canal.  It  runs 
through  a  river  whose  banks  are  populated  by  curious 
races  of  men,  and  whose  forests  are  the  abodes  of  monkeys, 
parrots,  and  strange  birds  and  animals.  It  passes  islands 
strewn  with  ruins  of  mysterious  cities  and  temples  where 
lived  and  worshipped  a  long-gone  race.  Granada,  on  one 
of  the  proposed  routes,  once  splendid,  awakens  the  curiosity 
of  the  traveller.  Mountains  rise  like  temple  domes  over 
the  great  lagoons.  The  land  is  a  museum  of  nature,  of 
antiquity,  of  strange   wild   life,   full   of  beauty  and  bloom. 

It  was  to  this  land  of  intense  interest  to  the  natural- 
ists and  antiquarian,  as  well  as  to  Costa  Rica,  that  the  Fro- 
bishers  were  going;  here  they  not  only  hoped  to  find  the 
quetzal,  but  other  things  as  curious,  in  the  new  route  of  the 
world. 

But   they  first  wished  to  see  Costa   Rica  (the  rich   coast) 


j6  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

and  its  bit  of  Paris,  San  Jose,  under  the  domes  of  the 
dead  volcanoes. 

It  is  an  easy  thing  to  reach  Port  Limon  from  Panama  by 
connecting  steamers.  It  is  not  easy  to  go  from  Port  Limon 
to  Greytown. 

Costa  Rica  is  a  terrace  between  the  two  oceans.  It  is  the 
smallest,  but  one  of  the  most  prosperous,  of  the  Central 
American  states,  and  it  has  been  called  the  "model  repub- 
lic." It  was  once  called  Nueva  Cartago.  It  was  assigned 
by  the  Crown  of  Spain  to  the  family  of  Columbus  as  a  duke- 
dom, under  the  name  of  Veragua. 

The  captain's  curious  allusion  to  an  adventuress,  led  young 
Hazel  to  say  :  — 

"  To-morrow  evening,  or  at  some  other  time,  I  will  relate 
to  you  a  story  that  may  not  be  as  unique  and  amusing  as 
the  captain's  might  have  been,  but  which  has  a  strange  sug- 
gestion in  it  that  has  long  haunted  me." 

On  the  day  before  the  company  left  Limon,  young  Aleman 
told  the  following  tale  of  an  adventurer,  whose  sins,  it  is 
probable,  had  left  him  no  place  that  he  could  call  home  in 
the  world. 

THE    STORY    OF    THE    VAMPIRE. 

"  When  I  first  came  to  Central  America,  on  my  way  to 
Costa  Rica,  the  ship  stopped  at  Cartagena,  the  old  city  of 
Xew  Granada,  now  the  principal  port  of  the  United  States 
of  Colombia.  The  harbor  is  one  of  the  finest  in  the  world. 
The  city  walls  are  said  to  be  sixty  feet  thick,  and  with  their 
fortifications   and   sunken   harbor  obstructions   are  fabled  to 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    VAMPIRE, 


77 


have  cost  so  many  millions  that  the  old  King  of  Spain  thought 
that  he  ought  to  see  them  from  the  palace  window  rising 
over  the  sea.  Here  the  sky  blazes,  and  the  waves  run  in 
ripples  of  dazzling  light.  Cocoanut  palms  cloud  the  air,  and 
in  many  of  the  giant  trees  could  be  gathered  a  cart-load  of 
cocoanuts,  as  many  as  a  donkey  or  mule  could  well  draw. 
The  bungalows,  or  quiiitas,  outside  of  the  yellow  walls,  are 
walled  in  bloom.  Indian  women,  naked  children,  and  little 
donkeys  are  to  be  seen  everywhere.  A  coffee  bag  is  suffi- 
cient clothing  for  the  boatmen  on  the  lagoons;  the  women 
go  bareheaded,  and  yet  keep  their  beautiful  hair. 

"  Everything  was  done  in  the  days  of  the  viceroys,  dons, 
and  grandees  to  make  this  town  of  New  Granada  the  impreg- 
nable fortress  of  the  golden  empire  of  Spain  in  the  New 
World. 

"  It  makes  one's  heart  ache  and  imagination  shrink  back 
to  think  of  the  work  done  here  by  enslaved  native  races  on 
these  huge  walls.  How  their  conquerors  and  taskmasters 
cracked  their  whips  above  them.  What  had  they  to  hope 
for  from  what  they  were  building  but  the  slavery  of  their 
own    people   who   were   to   come   alter  them? 

"There  are  riches  that  do  not  enrich,  and  Spain  found 
such  here.  The  walls  have  crumbled,  countless  lizards 
inhabit  them.  The  Granada  of  the  New  World  has  -one;  its 
Inquisition  is  a  curiosity;  the  winds  of  the  Caribbean  blow 
through  the  broken  doors  of  its  once  golden  churches. 
Poverty  fills  its  streets.  The  Colombian  Railroad  of  Moston 
traders  is  the  one  source  of  life  and  interest.  The  convents 
and  monasteries  are  deserted,  and  the  subterranean  avenues 
are    untrodden.        An     ironclad     fleet     mii/lit    soon     make    its 


yS  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

massive  walls  of  crumbling  masonry  a  derision.  So  comes 
to  nought  the  grandest  schemes  of  man  !  The  monuments 
of  Egypt  sink  into  the  sand,  and  Cartagena  feeds  the  palms 
for  scavenger  birds,  and  grows  weeds  for  the  lizards. 

"  While  wandering  about  in  the  bowery  suburbs  without 
the  walls,  amid  beautiful  estates  and  houses  woven  of  reeds 
and  fenced  with  sugar-cane,  I  one  day  met  a  man  with  one 
o(  the  most  dreadful  faces  I  had  ever  seen.  The  man  saw 
that  I  was  from  a  ship  lying  in  the  harbor,  and  he  ap- 
proached me  nervously,  and  began  to  make  inquiry  about 
the  ship  from  which  I  had  come  and  the  time  that  it  would 
leave  the  port. 

"'The  steamer  goes  to  Greytown,'  said  I,  'thence  to  Port 
Limon,  and  thence  to  New  York  by  way  of  Jamaica.' 

"  '  I  want  to  go  to  Jamaica,'  said  the  man  with  sudden 
decision. 

"  I  could  see  that  his  mind  had  seized  upon  Jamaica  on 
hearing  the  word,  and  I  said,  — 

"  '  Why  are  you  leaving  this  country  ? ' 

"  A  wild,  uncertain  light  came  into  his  eyes,  and  he  turned 
his  head  aside  with  a  shadow  of  terror,  and  he  answered,  — 

"  '  Something  is  following  me.' 

"  '  A  human  being,  an  enemy  ? '   I  asked. 

"  '  No  ;  not  that.  You  could  not  understand,  if  I  were  to 
tell  you.  I  spoke  too  soon,  but  it  would  come  out.  I  can- 
not stand  the  pressure  much  longer;  I  have  already  lost 
myself,  or  I  would  not  have  said  this  much.  Something 
haunts  me.' 

"  My  curiosity  was  greatly  excited,  but  by  the  man's  pitiable 
looks  more  than  by  his  words. 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    VAMPIRE.  79 

"'Your  nervous  system  is  suffering,'  said  I.  '  You  have 
been  using  up  your  vital  energies.      Do  you  sleep  ?' 

"'Sleep?  I  would  give  fortunes,  if  I  had  them,  to  bring 
back  the  sleep  of  my  childhood.  That  will  never  come  again. 
No,  no  !  Things  happen  after  which  refreshing  sleep  never 
comes  again.  But  here  I  am  talking  to  my  detriment.  You 
have  well  said,  —  yes,  yes,  —  you  have  well  said,  Captain,  that 
my  nerves  are  disturbed.      I  have  been   bitten  by  a  vampire.' 

"  This  was  a  strange  confession  indeed.  I  knew  the  old 
haunting  legend  of  New  Granada,  that  vampires  were  the 
souls  of  sea-robbers,  or  pirates,  whose  crimes  would  not  let 
them  rest.  I  had  heard  that  these  bats  fanned  their  victims 
with  their  wings  while  sucking  their  blood  ;  that  there  was 
some  strange  hypnotic  influence  in  this  wavy  motion,  so  that 
the  sleeping  person  or  animal  was  not  aware  that  his  blood 
was  being  sucked  away,  and  that  many  stories  of  adventure 
had  been  told  of  these  uncanny  and  dragon-like  denizens  of 
the  tropica]  forests. 

"  We  walked  towards  the  boca,  and  he  talked  to  me  in  an 
agitated  way,  more  and  more  raising  my  curiosity. 

"  Suddenly  he  stopped,  looking  out  through  the  tall  arcades 
of  palms,  and  said, 

"  'Captain,  I  have  been  bitten  twice.' 

"  This  statement  of  itself  would  not  have  startled  me,  but  for 
a  tone  that  indicated  that  something  lay  in  his  mind  behind 
the  mere  words.  He  took  a  cigar  from  his  mouth,  put  his 
hand  on  my  arm,  and  said, 

"  '  />'v  flit'  same  vampire' 

"'That  would  not  be  strange,'  \  said;  'the  same  bat  might 
follow  one,  alter  the  way  ol  the  man-eating  tiger.' 


SO  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  '  They  say  that  it  is  a  sign  for  a  vampire  to  follow  a  man,' 
he  said.  '  It  is  a  sign  that  there  is  something  wrong  in  his 
mind  that  affects  the  blood,  that  gives  a  certain  quality  to 
his  blood  that  lures  him  on.  Do  you  believe  these  bats  are 
animals  ? ' 

"  '  Nothing  more  nor  less  than  animals.  They  devour  what 
their  nature  craves,  like  other  animals.' 

"  '  What  their  nature  craves,'  he  said.  '  You  are  right.  But 
there  is  a  hidden  law  in  what  their  nature  craves.  There  are 
birds  whose  natures  crave  carrion.  The  condor  does.  Nat- 
ure has  many  hidden  principles.  This  is  a  strange  world. 
There  are  worlds  in  worlds.  A  haunted  mind  makes  bats' 
blood,  they  say  —  the  kind  of  blood  that  the  vampire  best 
likes.     The  vampire  follows  one  who  has  such  blood.' 

"  '  Have  you  ? '  asked  I,  suddenly. 

"  '  Have  I  ?  It  is  not  for  me  to  talk  with  a  stranger  about 
my  life.  Have  I?  I  only  know  that  I  have  been  bitten 
twice  by  the  same  bat.  That  unsettles  me.  I  want  to  sleep 
on  board  the  ship  to-night.     When  does  she  sail  ?  ' 

"  '  In  the  early  morning,'  said  I. 

"  He  went  into  the  booking  office  with  me  and  secured  his 
ticket  and  stateroom. 

"  He  took  his  supper  on  board,  went  to  the  smoking-room, 
and  passed  his  evening  among  the  passengers.  Stories  were 
told,  and  I  could  see  that  some  of  them  caused  a  certain  ner- 
vous twitching  of  the  sympathetic  nerves  that  was  not  com- 
mon, except  in  diseased,  nervous  states. 

"  At  about  ten  o'clock  he  went  to  his  stateroom,  whose  port- 
holes stood  open  to  the  wharves. 

"  It  was  a  still,  splendid  night.      The  heat  was  intense,  and 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    VAMPIRE.  Si 

the  sea  lay  purple  under  the  clear  moon  and  stars.  I  recall 
seeing  the  palm  shadows  in  the  fervid  air,  and  hearing  the 
boats  of  fishermen  go  by. 

"  The  city  lay  still  after  the  gates  closed.  There  was  a 
deep  silence  on  the  city,  sea,  and  palm-shadowed  shores. 

"It  was  a  long  time  before  I  fell  asleep.  When  I  awoke, 
the  sun  was  rising  in  a  red  sky,  like  a  chariot  of  fire.  A  fresh 
breeze  was  ruffling  the  purple  sea  ;  the  harbor  was  full  of 
fishing  boats,  drifting  here  and  there,  and  on  some  of  them 
parrots  were  screaming,  as  they  were  disturbed  by  the  move- 
ments of  their  owners. 

"  It  was  a  tropical  sunrise.  I  was  putting  on  thin  clothing, 
in  order  to  take  a  bath,  when  there  came  a  rap  at  my  door. 

"  '  Sehor,  the  man  who  came  on  board  when  you  did  is 
sick.     The  doctor  says  that  he  is  dying.' 

"  I  rushed  out  of  my  room  and  went  to  his.  Before  me 
lay  a  face  of  horror. 

"  '  What  has  happened  ? '  I  asked  of  the  stranger. 

"  '  I  have  been  bitten  again,'  he  said.  Me  trembled  and 
added,  '  By  the  same  bat.' 

"'How  do  you  know  that  it  was  the  same  bat?'  I  asked. 
'  You  imagine  that.' 

"  '  It  was  his  eyes,'  he  said  gasping.  '  I  saw  something 
in  them  both  times.' 

"  He  laid  his  right  foot  bare,  and  on  it  was  a  small  wound, 
and  on  the  bed  was  a  large  stain  ot  blood. 

"'My  friend,'  said  I,  'you  are  suffering  from  fright, 
from  seme  nervous  terror.  There  can  be  nothing  in  even 
three  bites  of  a  bat  to  cause  such  a  state  of  exhaustion  as 
you   are  in.      A  doctor  might  bleed  you   three  times,  and  no 

G 


82  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

such  effect  would  follow  the  loss  of  blood.  We  will  he  at 
sea  in  a  few  hours,  and  the  bat  cannot  follow  yon.  Von  will 
never  see  him  again.' 

"  He  raised  his  thin  arm  to  his  head,  and  touched  his 
forehead. 

"  '  There  is  a  bat  here,'  he  said,  '  a  vampire.' 

"He  turned  white  as  he  added,  'I  caused  him  to  be  there; 
he  it  is  that  leads  the  other  one.' 

"I  did  not  comprehend.     I  said, — ■ 

"  'Well,  it  is  all  over  now.     They  are  lifting  the  cables.' 

"  The  ship  moved  out  into  the  crimson  light  of  the  morn- 
ing that  arched  the  splendid  sea. 

"  '  What  is  the  matter  with  the  man  below  ? '  asked  a  pas- 
senger of  me  at  the  table. 

"  '  He  is  merely  nervous.  He  has  been  bitten  by  a  vam- 
pire or  vampires,  and  he  is  superstitious,  and  the  accident 
has  unsettled  his  mind.      He  will  be  all  right  again  by  night.' 

"The  voyage  to  Port  Limon  was  over  a  placid  sea.  The  day 
was  one  of  unclouded  splendor.  The  passengers  gathered 
lazily  on  deck,  read  novels,  and  drank  light  beverages. 

"The  stranger  did  not  appear  among  them.  The  steward 
visited  him  and  attended  to  his  wants.  I  found  him  a  little 
feverish  at  night,  and  left  him,  feeling  assured  that  a  single 
night's  rest  would  bring  about  a  renewal  of  health. 

"Another  tropic  night  passed  in  stars,  shadow,  and  silence. 
The  ship  drove  on,  ploughing  the  purple  sea  into  a  showery 
spray. 

"  Early  the  next  morning  there  fell  a  nervous  knock  on 
my  door. 

"  I  called  out,  '  Who  is  there  ? ' 


.    N     ■        AT  THE 


3N-LIKE    LOOK  NG  CREATL-E   AS       HE.LC    H  M 
/.   Vj.'  " 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    VAMPIRE.  8$ 

"  'The  steward,  sir.'      His  voice  was  unsteady. 

"  '  What  has  happened  ? ' 

"'The  stranger,  sir.' 

"  '  What  of  the  stranger  ? ' 

"  '  He  is  lying  dead.' 

"  I  leaped  up  and  hurried  to  the  room. 

"The  stranger  lav  there  lifeless. 

"  I  looked  at  his  feet.  There  was  a  fresh  wound  on  his 
right  foot,  and  the  bed  under  it  was  saturated  with  blood. 

"  In  a  corner  of  the  bed  was  a  dark  object,  like  a  bundle 
of  leather.  I  drew  it  out.  It  was  a  little  bat  —  not  a  huge 
animal  like  a  dragon.  I  was  about  to  strike  him  against  the 
door  in  my  agitation  and  anger.  But  I  glanced  at  the  demon- 
like looking  creature  as  I  held  him  by  his  wing.  I  wanted  to 
see  his  eyes.      I  caused  him  to  revolve  slowly. 

"  There  was  no  expression  in  those  eyes.  The  body  was 
as  eold  as  the  skinny  wing.      He  was  already  dead. 

"  Was  it  superstition  that  caused  the  death  of  the  stranger, 
or  clues  the  vampire  follow  certain  travellers  of  contaminated 
blood,  and  such  as  have  cause  for  an  unquiet  conscience  and 
dark  imaginations  ?  " 

Our  story  teller  had  so  used  the  picturesque  words  of 
the  country  that  the  narrative  left  the  questions  long  in 
our  minds,  though  the  one  in  regard  to  contaminated  blood 
was  hut  a  bit  of  the  art  of  vivid   narration. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

COSTA    RICA  I    "THE    SWITZERLAND    OF    THE    TROPICS." 

COSTA  RICA,  or  the  "  Rich  Coast,"  has  been  called 
"the  Switzerland  of  the  tropics."  The  region  around 
San  Jose  has  a  climate  like  May  or  June  in  New  England, 
and  is  quite  unlike  most  tropical  countries  in  this  respect;  but 
there  is  little  resemblance  between  the  dead  volcanoes  here 
and  the  crystal  peaks  of  Switzerland.  Mere  are  no  glaciers, 
no  snows,  only  a  white  frost  in  very  high  altitudes.  The  hills 
are  carpeted  with  flowers  to  the  sky.  A  city  like  Valencia, 
in  Venezuela,  under  the  shining  lines  of  the  white  Cordillera, 
might  more  fully  be  termed  the  Switzerland  of  the  tropics. 

But  there  is  a  vital  force  in  the  mountain  air  of  the  beauti- 
ful republic  that  makes  the  part  of  it  around  San  Jose  and 
the  Hot  Springs  of  Cartago  a  Switzerland  to  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  plains.  Such  will  ever  find  health  by  going  up 
into  the  mountains. 

The  mountains  and  the  mountain  region  of  Costa  Rica 
have  not  only  a  cool  and  exhilarating  New  England  air,  but 
the  atmosphere  is  said  to  have  "  mysterious  qualities  that 
render  it  a  sovereign  remedy  for  some  of  the  most  distress- 
ing ailments  of  common  life."  Consumption  is  likely  to 
disappear  on  the  coffee  farm,  and  rheumatism  at  the  Hot 
Springs   of   Cartago.      Here   people    may    always   have   deli- 

84 


COSTA    RICA.  85 

cious  oranges  before  breakfast,  and  cocoanut  milk  and  other 
fattening  fruit  at  any  time  of  the  day.  The  whole  country 
is  literally  loaded  with  plantains  and  bananas,  and  on  these 
a  seeker  after  health  would  soon  find  his  weight  increasing, 
and  his  thin  limbs  filling  out  to  the  desired  dimensions  of 
comfortable  rotundity. 

Here  people  may  wear  old  clothes,  and  live  in  the  open  air 
with  bare  heads,  and  travel  about  with  bare  feet. 

The  coffee  planters  and  the  proprietors  of  banana  farms 
who  begin  life  here  with  a  little  capital,  and  who  become 
worth,  by  the  growth  of  their  estates,  from  $10,000  to  $50,000, 
do  not  greatly  change  their  style  of  living.  One  cannot  tell 
here  who  is  rich  or  who  is  poor.  The  rich  adhere  to  simple 
living.  It  is  the  farm  that  grows  and  not  the  luxury  of  the 
house.  The  Costa  Rican,  whether  native  or  adopted,  is  as  a 
rule  a  true  democrat,  and  loves  his  democracy.  He  is  proud 
of  the  wealth  that  enables  him  to  live  simply,  and  he  has 
little  of  the  vulgar  taste  that  makes  so  many  North  Americans 
who  acquire  property  seek  to  make  a  display  over  their  less 
fortunate  neighbors. 

His  house  is  of  one  story,  with  a  tiled  roof.  It  is  built  of 
adobe  and  is  as  white  as  snow.  It  has  a  patio,  or  enclosed 
court.  This  is  adorned  with  beautiful  vines,  orchids  in  hang- 
ing p'»ts,  and  flowers.  He  keeps  one  or  more  wonderful 
parrots    here,  and  some  sweet   singing  birds. 

In  the  salas  around  the  patio  may  be  a  piano,  a  library  of 
many  books,  and  ornaments  made  of  the  woods  oi  the  coun- 
try. The  mats  are  of  the  skins  and  furs  of  beautiful  animals. 
A  quetzal  is  almost  sure  to  be  found  among  the  sala  decora- 
tions, but  it  is  dead. 


4 
86  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

But  simple  as  may  be  his  home,  — all  out  of  doors  is  really 
his  home,  —  it  is  his  farm  that  grows.  The  cocoanut  palms, 
plantains,  and  orange  trees  multiply  around  his  house,  and 
his  coffee  fields  stretch  farther  and  farther  away.  If  he 
live  in  the  hot  regions,  he  goes  up  into*  the  mountains  — 
the   Costa   Rican   Switzerland  —  at  times. 

The  country  is  rich  in  historical  romance,  but  has  found 
no  great  historian  or  poet.  It  comprehends  the  territory 
granted  by  the  Crown  of  Spain  to  the  family  of  Columbus, 
under  the  name  of  the  Dukedom  of  Veragua,  of  which  we 
have  spoken.  Here  were  the  famous  gold  and  silver  mines 
that  fed  the  pride  of  the  dons,  hidalgos,  and  grandees  of 
Spain  for  many  years.  After  the  massacre  of  the  Spaniards, 
all  traces  of  these  mines  were  lost  in  the  growth  of  the 
forests  which  blotted  out  the  footprints  of  the  Spaniards. 
The  wondrous  mines  of  Estralla  and  Tisingal  became  a 
memory. 

"I  have  been  told,"  said  a  missionary  priest,  "that  the 
Cabccuras  of  the  present  day  relate  that  after  the  massacre 
of  the  Spaniards,  in  1610,  vast  quantities  of  gold  were  thrown 
into  the  lake,  where  they  still  remain." 

Costa  Rica  is  the  southern  republic  of  Central  America. 
It  has  an  area  of  more  than  26,000  square  miles,  with  a  dis- 
puted boundary ;  but  the  extreme  fertility  of  the  soil,  the 
beauty  of  the  scenery  and  vegetation,  the  salubrity  of  the 
climate,  the  health  region  of  Cartago,  or  Hot  Springs  {aguas 
caliciitc),  give  this  limited  area  between  the  Atlantic  and  the 
Pacific  an  untold  value  in  the  progress  of  the  near  future. 
It  is  a  coffee  land  and  a  banana  land  now,  but  in  these  re- 
spects its  resources  have   hardly  been  tested.     The  old  gold 


COSTA    RICA.  8? 

mines  of  the  cacique  may  never  be  discovered  again,  but  the 
table-lands  of  San  Jose  and  Cartago  are  in  their  vegetable 
productions  a  source  of  gold  that  will  never  fail. 

The  Andes  here  rise  to  the  height  of  nearly  12,000  feet. 
From  the  nearly  extinct  volcano  of  Irazu  the  waters  of  both 
the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  may  be  seen.  On  these 
table-lands,  the  most  delightful  in  the  world,  the  temperature 
ranges  from  70  to  80  F.  throughout  the  year.  The  dry 
season,  or  season  of  light  and  infrequent  rains,  lasts  from 
December  to  May.  At  this  period  the  health  conditions  are 
perfect. 

To  the  lover  of  Mowers  the  table-lands  are  an  earthly  para- 
dise. This  is  orchid  land.  The  ancient  trees  are  gardens 
of  parasites  of  marvellous  forms,  hues,  and  odors,  such  as 
elsewhere  only  enter  into   dreams. 

The  population  of  the  country  is  only  about  a  quarter  of  a 
million,  but  it  is  very  rapidly  increasing.  Young  Germans 
and  Americans,  as  we  have  indicated,  are  planting  coffee 
farms  everywhere,  and  very  extensive  banana  plantations 
are  being  cultivated  along  the  lines  of  railroads. 

The  tourist,  as  a  rule,  enters  the  country  by  way  of  Port 
Limon.  The  town  is  very  hut,  and  after  a  tew  days  he  takes 
the  train  for  San  Jose,  at  a  cost  of  about  S3. 00  American 
monev,   or  gold,   which   is  the  same. 

Me  is  at  once  in  wonderland,  and  his  surprise  will  grow 
with  cverv  mile.  He  will  pass  through  lofty  cocoanut  groves, 
in  which  he  may  see  a  cart-load  of  nuts  on  a  single  tree. 
The  groves  seem  to  be  endless.  lie  will  imagine  that  there 
must  If  coeoanuts  enough  here  to  supply  the  world. 

He  will  next  enter  the  region   of  bananas  and   plantains,  a 


88  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

sea  of  tropical  vegetation.  The  air  hangs  with  bananas. 
The  earth  seems  to  pour  out  the  luxurious  vegetation  of 
banana  leaves.     A  half  dozen  of  these  would  make  a  tent. 

Orange  trees  are  everywhere.  Oranges  do  not  count  in 
this  country  of  tropical  luxuriance. 

He  will  next  eome  to  the  regions  of  tropfcal  forests  and 
the  valleys  of  the  mad  river  Reventazon.  He  will  find  this 
river  one  long  cascade.  He  will  look  down  upon  it  in  many 
ways  through  vistas  of  tropical  vegetation.  From  these  wild 
regions  he  will  come  to  the  valley  of  Cartago,  one  of  the  few 
earthly  paradises,  at  the  foot  of  Irazii.  Here  a  company 
some  years  ago  built  a  large  hotel,  and  laid  a  tramway  or 
railroad  to  it,  at  a  distance  of  two  or  more  miles  from  the 
town.  The  tramway  at  the  time  of  writing  is  not  in  use,  but 
it  is  an  easy  walk  or  horseback  ride  to  the  hotel.  A  gentle- 
man by  the  name  of  Mills  has  a  delightful  house  of  entertain- 
ment here,  with  a  charming  garden  and  a  coffee  plantation. 

The  ride  on  the  railroad  from  Cartago  to  San  Jose,  some 
fourteen  miles,  is  most  beautiful.  A  part  of  it  is  through 
coffee  plantations  buried  in  plantain  leaves,  which  shade  the 
precious  red  berries. 

The  coffee  planters  are  floral  artists  in  making  pictu- 
resque their  plantations.  The  coffee  plants  require  shade, 
and  this  is  brought  about  by  planting  between  the  rows  of 
coffee  leaf  and  flowering  plants.  The  land  looks  like  a 
vast  flower  garden,  but  under  the  glorious  vegetation  the  red 
berries  of  the  coffee  plant  are  in  their  season  everywhere  to 
be  seen. 

Costa  Rica's  capital,  San  Jose,  would  be  beautiful  any- 
where in  the  world.     The  railroad  station  is  near  to  the  Pub- 


COSTA    RICA.  89 

lie  Garden,  and  one  of  the  first  objects  to  greet  the  traveller 
will  be  an  allegorical  statue  of  the  heroic  spirit  of  the 
country,  a  work  of  genius,  a  poem  in  stone,  a  conception  at 
once  poetic  and  sublime.  North  America  has  but  few 
works  of  such  true  art  which  express  the  heart  of  its  history. 
San  Jose  is  simply  beautiful,  beautiful.  It  is  beautiful  in 
its  situation,  beautiful  in  its  simple  art,  beautiful  in  its  gar- 
dens. Its  women  are  beautiful,  and,  better  than  all,  beautiful 
is  the  spirit  of  its  people.  There  are  few  places  in  the  world 
that  are  more  lovely  than  this  city  of  Saint  Joseph  and  its 
near  paradise  valley  of  Cartago. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


COFFEE    LAND. 


OUR  travellers  found  Port  Limon  a  simple  town  indeed, 
of  recent  settlement ;  but  it  was  a  place  of  sunshine  and 
palms,  to  whose  wharves  came  the  products  of  the  table-lands 
of  the  bright  oceanic  atmospheres.  Its  harbor  is  good  and 
beautiful,  but  Limon  is  a  town  of  the  railway,  that  gathers 
the  coffee  and  bananas  for  exportation. 

There  were  two  incidents  that  startled  our  travellers  in 
their  excursions  around  Port  Limon. 

Freight  cars  came  down  the  coasts  loaded  with  green 
bananas.  They  were  lazily  unloaded  by  the  natives,  who 
were  people  of  scanty  clothing  and  easy  dispositions.  One 
of  these  carriers,  in  helping  to  unload  a  crate-like  car,  sud- 
denly uttered  a  cry  and  turned  a  half  somersault  —  shaking 
his  hand. 

"  He  is  bitten,"  said  an  Englishman. 

The  man  did  not  seem  to  be  alarmed,  not  more  than  one 
would  be  in  the  States  who  had  been  stung  by  a  wasp. 

Alonzo  Frobisher  ran  to  the  place,  expecting  to  see  a  cen- 
tipede or  a  serpent.  He  had  read  of  such  things  in  the 
land  of  the  taper  and  vampire  bats. 

A  huge  spider  was  seen  secreting  itself  in  a  pile  of  ba- 
nanas.    The  negro,  or  Indian,  seized  a  coffee  bag,  and  fiat- 

90 


COFFEE    LAND.  91 

tened  the  unsightly  creature  that  had  bitten  him,  and  went 
on  with  his  work. 

But  with  the  Indian's  howl  on  being  bitten  rose  another 
howl,  very  startling  and  pitiful. 

Alonzo  turned  in  the  direction  of  the  alarming  sound. 

He  beheld  a  strange  animal  in  one  of  the  empty  slat  cars. 

"What  is  that?"  he  asked  of  a  trader. 

"A  howler,"  answered  the  trader.  "Have  you  lost  your 
ears  ?  " 

Alonzo  recalled  what  he  had  read  of  the  howling  monkeys 
of  the  untroubled  forest  here,  and  he  wondered  if  this  was 
one  of  them.  But  he  stepped  about  very  lightly  after  the 
curious  mishap,  and  he  did  not  venture  any  more  questions. 

"  One  needs  to  be  pretty  careful  in  these  parts  of  the 
world,"  said  the  Knglish  trader,  "and  to  keep  one's  eyes 
peeled.  I've  seen  a  creature  with  more'n  a  hundred  legs 
come  out  of  a  bunch  of  bananas,  and  every  leg  was  full  of 
poison;  and  if  he  were  to  bite  one,  that  one  might  just  as 
well  settle  up  his  affairs,  so  far  as  the  world  down  here 
goes,  and   prepare  to  move  upward." 

He  added  some  other  incidents  to  this  not  over  cheerful 
introductory  intelligence. 

"Thev  poisonous  spiders  and  things  —  T  don't  know 
what  their  names  may  be  — crawl  out  of  banana  bins  on  board 
of  the  ship  and  visit  the  passengers  nights  in  their  state- 
rooms.  Now  if  one  only  lies  perfectly  still,  and  lets  'em 
scatter  about  freely  over  one's  fare,  and  don't  cough,  or 
sneeze,  or  speak,  or  twitch  one's  muscles  it  is  all  well 
enough.  When  the-  many  legs  lias  made  Ins  tour  ol  investi- 
gation, the   creeper   will    run    off  on    the   bedticking,  and   go 


92  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

away  to  the  other  parts  of  the  vessel.  But  it  is  best  for 
one  to  lie  pretty  quiet  during  such  visits  as  these." 

He  cast  a  curious  glance  at  Alonzo,  and  said,  "  Heave 
ho  !  "  Alonzo  wondered  if  such  visitors  were  to  be  found  in 
the  hotel. 

How  serene  the  sea  looked  from  the  little  town,  with  its 
purple  cleanness  and  its  lively  inhabitants  of  fishes  and  birds. 
The  air  was  such  as  would  put  one  to  sleep  easily,  and  the 
natives  seemed  to  be  grateful  for  the  gift  of  dreaming  in  the 
shade,  fanned  by  the  sea.  How  could  such  poisonous  things 
find  a  place  amid  all  of  this  beauty. 

Here  was  parrot  land  as  well  as  coffee  land,  and  some  of 
the  little  houses  of  the  new  port  were  abloom  with  these 
gorgeous  birds,  which  never  forget  to  be  sociable.  Each 
street  has  its  favorite  parrot,  and  some  of  the  parrots  here 
are  said  to  go  visiting. 

The  parrots  here  give  the  white  stranger  a  cordial  wel- 
come, turning  their  heads  aside  with  an  appreciation  of  fine 
clothing,  which  is  not  over  abundant  here  among  the  na- 
tives, although  much  of  it  is  very  white  and  clean. 

The  parrot  is  a  well-dressed  bird,  and  likes  those  of  its  own 
kind.  He  has  faith  in  men  and  things  that  look  well,  and 
aversion  to  things  unsightly  and  uncanny.  When  he  gets 
hold  of  a  monkey's  tail,  the  monkey  in  this  port  does  credit 
to  his  name  here,  and  becomes,  indeed,  a  howler. 

The  railway  from  Port  Limon  to  San  Jose,  which  we  have 
already  described,  is  about  one  hundred  miles  in  length,  and 
over  this  our  travellers  went  to  Cartago,  and  the  English  cap- 
tain, who  had  business  at  San  Jose,  made  the  journey  with 
them. 


THE    VANISHING    IMAGE.  93 

They  stopped  for  a  single  night  at  Cartago,  in  the  house 
kept  by  a  good  German  woman  by  the  name  of  Yokes. 
The  house  was  near  the  governor's  palace,  and  it  looked  as 
though  it  might  have  been  built  for  the  residence  of  some 
notable  person,  as  some  of  the  rooms  were  curiously  painted. 

They  were  here  under  Irazu,  that,  in  1723,  caused  the 
land  to  tremble  for  several  days,  and  that  filled  the  sky 
with  smoke,  and  poured  forth  fire,  and  filled  the  valley 
with  rocks  and  stones. 

The  party  visited  the  Public  Gardens  and  the  churches. 
Then  they  sat  down  on  the  steps  of  the  government  house, 
and  after  the  soldiers  had  done  exercising,  the  young  Ger- 
man related  to  them  some  of  the  old  legends  of  the  place. 

THE    STORY    OF    THE    VANISHING     IMAGE     AND    OF    THE    MIRACLE 
CHURCH    OF    CARTAGO. 

One  of  the  most  poetic  places  in  Costa  Rica  is  the 
church  of  the  Queen  of  the  Angels  in  Cartago.  A  beau- 
tiful description  of  it  was  given  in  Harpers  Magazine  in 
1 859-1 860,  by  Thomas  F.  Meagher.  Leigh  had  read  these 
articles,  and  he  found  the  church  but  little  changed  in  its 
outward  or  inward  appearance  since  Mr.  Meagher  wrote  his 
matchless  description  of  it,  nearly  fort)-  years  ago. 

The  "huge  bowlders"  are  there,  the  Doric  facade,  the 
"cohort  of  winged,  frocked,  and  buskined  angels  ol  boyish 
stature."  The  high  altar,  hiding  in  part  the  organ  and  choir, 
gleams  as  then  in  all  the  glory  of  gold  and  gems. 

The  altar,  some  thirty  feet  high,  is  divided  into  two 
chambers,  one  of  which  contains  the  sacrament,  and  the 
other,  before   which   hangs  a  white  silk  curtain   with   golden 


94  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

fringe,  is  supposed  to  contain  a  miraculous  image,  the  vision 
of  which  is  capable  of  healing  the  sick  under  the  right  con- 
ditions of  faith.  Of  this  image  a  very  curious  story  is  told, 
though  one  not  unlike  the  legends  of  Lucan  and  Guadalupe. 

The  legend  is  after  this  manner :  — 

In  the  year  1643  there  lived  a  peasant  woman  of  simple 
faith  in  a  forest  near  Cartago.  One  day  she  went  out  into  the 
woods  to  gather  sticks  and  she  found  an  image  of  a  lovely 
and  gracious  lady,  but  of  rude  form,  lying  on  a  stone.  She 
was  greatly  surprised,  and  she  took  up  the  image,  and  car- 
ried it  to  her  hut,  and  placed  it  in  a  recess  there. 

She  went  into  the  wood  again  to  gather  sticks,  when  she 
was  again  surprised  to  find  what  looked  to  her  to  be  the 
same  image.  She  took  it  up  and  carried  it  to  her  hut,  and 
going  to  the  recess  where  she  had  placed  the  first  image  she 
found  that  the  first  image  was  not  there,  but  that  the  recess 
was  empty.  She  put  the  second  image  in  the  recess,  and 
wondered  where  the  first  image  went,  or  if  indeed  this  was 
not  the  same  as  the  one  that  she  had  first  found. 

She  went  out  a  third  time  to  gather  sticks  and  as  she 
approached  the  stone  where  she  had  found  the  two  images, 
or  twice  found  the  same  image,  another  image  seemed  to  be 
there.  She  took  it  up,  hurried  back  to  the  recess  in  her  hut, 
and,  lo,  the  second  image  was  gone. 

She  was  perplexed  and  alarmed,  and  went  for  counsel  to 
the  priest,  Don  Alonzo  de  Castro,  of  Sandoval.  The  good 
priest  took  the  image  and  put  it  into  a  closet,  which  had  a 
lock,  and  turned  the  key. 

But  when  the  good  woman  again  went  into  the  wood,  lo, 
the   disappearing   image   was    found   upon   the   stone   again, 


THE    VANISHING    IMAGE.  9$ 

where  the  three  images,  or  the  same  image,  —  who  could  tell  ? 
—  had  been  discovered. 

She  hastened  to  tell  the  priest.  Me  unlocked  the  closet 
and  saw  that  the  image  was  gone. 

"It  is  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Virgin.  We  must  build  a 
church  in  the  place,  and  give  the  image  a  throne  on  the 
altar  or  in   the  sanctuary." 

In  1782  the  illustrious  Estaten  Livenzo  de  Tristan, 
bishop  of  Nicaragua  and  Costa  Rica,  in  a  solemn  ceremony 
declared  the  image  to  be  the  special  patron  of  Cartago.  It 
was  consecrated  with  holy  oil,  and  it  was  forbidden  to  touch 
it  save  with  anointed  hands.  The  church  of  the  image  is 
known  as  that  of  the  Queen  of  the  .Angels.  It  was  raised  to 
the  rank  of  a  basilica  by  the  illustrious  Don  Anselmo  Lorente. 

The  veiled  image  in  the  golden  chamber  began  to  work 
miracles  on  the  needy  faithful,  when  the  veil  was  removed. 
The  stories  of  the  cures  performed  on  devotees  at  this  shrine 
would  doubtless  fill  volumes.  One  may  find  there  almost 
innumerable  votive  offerings  for  benefits  in  the  church. 
Hut  one  miracle,  supposed  to  have  been  performed  by  the 
image,  has  become  historical,  and  is  celebrated  in  a  very 
picturesque  way  in   Cartago. 

In  the  days  of  the  buccaneers,  eight  hundred  Knglish 
sea-robbers,  under  the  command  of  one  Captain  Mansfield. 
an  associate  ol  the  celebrated  Morgan,  one  of  the  pirates  ol 
Panama,  landed  at  Matina  to  invade  the  rich  coast  and  its 
lorests  in  search  of  the  treasures  for  which  tin-  country  was 
famous.  The  helpless  people  turned  tor  protection  to  the 
image  ol  the  Queen  ol  the  Angels,  and  bearing  it  before 
them  marched  down  the  valley  to  meet  the  invaders. 


o6  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  sight  of  the  image  caused  the  hearts  of  the  robbers 
to  melt  and  fail,  and  they  Med  back  to  their  ships,  leaving  the 
sought-for  treasures  to  their  native  owners.  This  event  is 
celebrated  year  by  year.  The  rude  image  is  a  treasure  of 
Costa  Rica,  and  as  it  is  associated  with  a  woman  of  simple 
faith  and  with  an  historic  episode  and  with  many  supposed 
cures  of  healing,  one  would  not  care  to  suggest  natural  causes 
for  the  story,  as  could  be  easily  done. 

The  festival  of  the  image  of  the  Queen  of  the  Angels  is  in 
May,  the  month  of  flowers.  The  valley  of  Cartago  abounds 
in  flowers,  and  especially  in  rare  orchids,  and  it  is  the  delight 
of  peasant  women  to  bring  offerings  of  the  choicest  blooms 
of  the  mountains  and  valleys  to  this  church,  and  to  lay  them 
on  the  steps  of  the  stone  altar,  amid  the  lighting  of  candles 
and  the  ringing  of  bells. 

Few  altars  in  the  world  ever  had,  or  ever  could  have,  such 
decorations  of  flowers.  In  this  valley  every  road  is  lined  with 
fantastic  and  surprising  clusters  of  orchids,  of  many  colors 
and  odors.  The  tangled  forests  hang  with  wonderful  floral 
festoons.  The  trunks  of  the  trees  are  flower  beds,  and  the 
barks  on  the  limbs  send  down  airy  flowers  on  trailing  cords 
or  vines.  There  are  air  plants  everywhere.  The  air  of  May 
here  seems  to  bloom. 

Leigh  went  to  the  church,  which  is  a  little  out  of  the  most 
compact  part  of  the  town,  on  one  of  the  week  days  on  which 
is  no  special  feast  or  celebration.  Me  sat  down  to  study  the 
golden  angels,  among  which  is  Gabriel,  who  seems  ascend- 
ing, bearing  in  one  hand  a  pair  of  scales. 

But  though  the  day  was  a  quiet  one,  steps  almost  noise- 
lessly glided  in.      Many    of    the    worshippers    were    women 


THE    VANISHING    IMAGE.  (J/ 

dressed  in  black,  bearing  candles  to  light  before  the  stone 
steps  of  the  altar. 

One  woman,  richly  dressed,  but  with  head  covered,  walked 
on  her  knees  across  the  brick  pavements  of  the  church, 
repeating  her  prayers.     Young  priests  did  the  same. 

But  the  scene  which  most  interested  him  was  the  coming 
and  going  of  peasant  women  with  offerings  of  flowers. 

The  land  is  full  of  heliotrope.  Such  flowers  filled  the  church 
with  odor.  The  most  delicate  roses  grow  here.  These,  too, 
came  in  dark  hands.  The  heads  of  these  women  were  bare, 
as  were  the  feet  of  many  of  them. 

Leigh  saw  the  heliotropes,  the  roses,  the  calla  lilies,  the 
cacti,  the  more  common  orchids,  enter  as  in  a  floral  proces- 
sion. But  dark  peons  stole  into  the  company  of  the  kneeling 
flower  women  —  possibly  Indians  from  the  country.  They 
were  clad  in  rags,  but  their  faces  bore  the  stamp  of  firm 
faith  and  character.  Ignorant  of  books  they  must  have  been. 
Some  of  them  led  little  children  by  the  hand. 

The  flowers  that  these  laid  down  on  the  stone  steps  were 
for  the  most  part  such  as  only  Costa  Rica  and  the  South 
could  produce.  They  were  formed  of  the  sun,  the  air,  and 
the  dew.  Some  of  them  looked  like  spirit  (lowers.  It 
seemed  as  though  they  might  have  been  gathered  in  a  par- 
adise. 

Leigh  was  a  Protestant.  To  him  the  legend  of  the  (  hieen 
of  the  Angels  was  nothing  but  an  illusion,  a  parable.  lie 
wondered  at  the  influence  of  such  a  simple  tale. 

But  he  watched  closely  the  devotions  of  these  Indian  peons 
as  they  knelt  there  on  the  hard  brick  floor.  What  strength 
of  hope  and  comfort  there  was  in  their  faith  ! 


98  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

As  he  was  making  a  study  of  their  sincere  faces,  and  was 
drawn  to  them  by  the  beauty  of  their  sincerity,  the  silver  cur- 
tain, or  silk  curtain  with  gold  fringe,  was  drawn  from  the 
shrine  of  the  image. 

How  those  dark  eyes  of  the  peons,  men  and  women,  peered 
into  the  glimmering  chamber  of  years,  as  it  stood  unveiled 
before  them.      Mow  their  lips  moved  in  prayer. 

They  had  sins  that  haunted  them  from  which  they  wished 
to  be  free.  They  prayed.  They  had  disease  preying  upon 
them,  it  may  be.  They  prayed.  They  had  relatives  and 
friends  who  were  sick.  They  prayed  for  them.  They  prayed 
as  for  life. 

The  silk  curtain  fell.  The  altar  lights  were  extinguished. 
The  peons  arose  from  their  knees,  and  went  out  into  the 
sunny  air,  and  looked  up  to  IrazAi  lying  against  the  sky, 
green,  with  peaceful  flocks  and  farms. 

The  peons  went  back  to  their  huts.  There  was  a  settled 
peace  on  their  faces. 

"Victims  of  superstition,  do  you  say?"  said  Leigh  on  re- 
turning to  his  friends.  "  They  had  followed  the  best  that 
they  knew.  They  had  sought  to  be  true  to  the  divine  spirit 
in  them,  and  between  these  simple  children  of  faith,  with  their 
fairy  tales  and  fables,  if  such  these  legends  are,  and  those 
who  better  know,  but  are  governed  by  appetite,  passion,  and 
selfish  lusts  and  aims,  there  is  a  wide  difference  indeed.  There 
was  a  faith  beyond  all  the  tales  of  ceremonies  of  superstition 
in  the  eyes  of  those  Indians,  and  my  soul  went  out  to  them 
in  a  feeling  of  brotherhood,  and  I  loved  them,  for  so  much 
of  that  which  is  in  them  that  we  both  believed." 

But  the  Sunday  that  followed   Leiirh's  visit  to  the  church 


THE    VANISHING    IMAGE.  99 

of  the  poetic  legend,  filled  the  young  traveller  with  surprise, 
for  it  was  market  day.  The  streets  thronged  with  people 
from  the  country  and  hills,  bringing  in  their  wares.  The 
plaza  was  spread  with  the  treasures  of  the  sea,  farm,  and  for- 
ests,—  common  goods,  curious  fabrics,  pearls  from  the  Gulf 
of  Nicoya,  silks  from  Guatemala,  oranges  of  rich  color, 
bananas  as  golden,  sweet  lemons,  cocoanuts,  zapoles,  de- 
licious drinks  of  many  kinds.  In  certain  places  there  were 
cock-fights,  and  men  and  boys  were  to  be  seen  running 
around  with  sharp-spurred  game-cocks  under  their  arms. 

But  the  Holy  Day  had  been  ushered  in  by  a  great  ringing 
of  bells,  and  the  streets  had  been  filled  with  churchgoers. 
Leigh's  mind  was  dazed  and  puzzled  by  all  these  things;  he 
turned  to  an  English  friend,  as  the  sun  was  throwing  its  last 
rays  over  Irazu  :  — 

"Well,  what  do  you  think  of  it?" 

"Oh,  it  is  the  custom  of  the  country." 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  it  would  be  better  to  hold  the  market 
on  some  other  day  than  Sunday,"  he  said.  "  But  the  people 
do  not  seem  to  be  intentionally  irreverent.  The  sound  of  a 
certain  bell  would  bring  them  all  down  upon  their  knees.  In 
this  country,  I  do  not  know  where  I  am.  Everything  is 
strange  to  me." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  YOUNG  COFFEE  PLANTER  AT  HOME  —  IRAZU. 

THE  plantation  of  young  Hazel  lay  in  one  of  the  long, 
cool  valleys  among  the  foot-hills  of  Irazu.  A  clear 
stream  ran  through  it,  coming  down  from  the  mountain  side. 
The  place  looked  like  a  plantain  farm  at  the  first  view,  or 
like  a  plantain  forest,  for  the  plant  of  shining  and  majestic 
leaves  had  been  set  in  rows  between  the  rows  of  coffee,  not 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  plantains,  but  to  afford  a  shade. 
The  coffee  plant,  as  we  have  said,  must  have  shade  for  its 
perfect  development.  It  would  seem  that  the  orange  grow- 
ers in  Florida  might  protect  their  trees  by  planting  other 
trees  beside  them  in  a  like  way. 

The  plantain  leaves  glisten  in  the  sun  in  long  rows.  Some 
of  them  were  twelve  or  more  feet  high.  Here  and  there  a 
withered  leaf  gave  a  touch  of  contrast  to  the  dazzling 
green. 

Around  the  coffee  fields  were  hedges  of  living  trees, 
trimmed  so  as  to  form  a  fence.  These  living  fences  sent 
out  slender  spikes,  or  limbs,  which  seemed  to  burn  with 
starry  red  blooms.  Orchids  gathered  on  them,  and  roses 
were  trained  about  them  at  the  gateways.  Wild  morning- 
glory  vines  wove  a  network  in  them,  and  here  and  there 
an  orange  tree  loaded  with  golden  fruit  broke  the  yellow 
barrier  with  its  leaves  of  dark  green. 


THE    YOUNG    COFFEE    PLANTER    AT    HOME.  IOI 

Under  the  long  rows  of  plantains  were  the  coffee  plants 
or  trees,  with  leaves  as  dark  as  those  on  the  orange  trees. 
They  were  covered  with  red  berries  about  the  size  of  small 
cherries.  They  were  literally  buried  in  the  foliage  that 
protected  them. 

The  house  was  white  and  red,  of  one  story,  built  around  a 
court  and  a  wall.  It  was  made  of  adobe  and  blocks  of  stone 
which  probably  had  been  thrown  down  from  Irazu  at  the 
great  eruption,  and  was  covered  with  red  tiles,  which  were 
covered  with  flowering  vines. 

There  was  a  balcony  around  the  inside  of  the  house. 
From  the  roof  of  the  balcony  depended  pots  of  orchids,  cages 
of  birds,  and  perches  for  parrots.  At  the  end,  Hazel  had 
built  a  schoolroom  for  free  education. 

The  first  sight  that  arrested  Leigh's  attention  on  entering 
the  long,  low,  rambling  building  was  a  quetzal  in  a  collection 
of  beautiful  birds  in  a  case. 

"  Why  !  "   he  exclaimed,  "  you  have  a  royal  trogon  here." 

"So  f  have,"  answered  young  Aleman,  "and  the  stuffed 
bird  is  so  common  an  ornament  of  our  houses  here  that  I 
had  really  forgotten  that  I  had  one  of  my  own." 

The  quetzal  was  beautiful.  Its  carmine  breast  was  par- 
ticularly lustrous.  It  had  two  very  long  tail  feathers  of 
black  and  green. 

"  Was  this  bird  found  here?"  asked  Leigh. 

"I  think  so;  the  Indian  hunters  find  them  in  the  forests 
o|  Irazu." 

"  Are  there  any  live  ones  in  the  houses  on  the  coffee  plan- 
tations ?  " 

"  I  never  saw  one,"  said  young  Aleman. 


102  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Their  first  breakfast  consisted  of  hot  cakes,  eggs,  black 
beans  (frijoles),  fried  plantains,  and  fruit,  with  superb  coffee. 

After  this  meal  the  party  went  out  on  the  veranda  and 
sat  down,  and  the  boys  looked  out  on  the  shining  coffee 
fields. 

"  I  have  a  question  for  you,  my  young  friend,"  said  Cap- 
tain Frobisher  to  young  Hazel.  "If  you  regard  it  an  imper- 
tinent one,  you  will  of  course  excuse  me  and  not  answer  it. 
It  is,  what  are  the  profits  of  a  coffee  plantation  here,  within 
sight  of  Irazu —  the  Cartago  or  San  Jose  region,  you  may 
call  it?" 

"The  young  planters,  and  old  ones  as  well,  have  but  a 
single  answer  to  that  often-asked  epicstion.  It  is  this,  '  The 
amount  of  one's  investment  in  coffee  is,  after  five  years,  the 
amount  of  one's  yearly  income.'  I  invested  $3000  in  the 
enterprise  ;  after  seven  years  my  income  is  more  than  that  as 
a  rule,  though  this  year  the  price  of  coffee  fell,  but  it  is  rising 
again." 

They  looked  up  the  long  slopes  of  Irazu.  The  volcano 
did  not  appear  high.  The  top  was  shaded  here  and  there 
with  patches  of  green  forests. 

"  In  those  woods,  high  up  on  the  mountain,  is  the  haunt  of 
the  quetzal,  I  am  told,"  said  young  Aleman.  "  I  must  plan  a 
journey  on  muleback  for  you  to  the  summit  of  the  moun- 
tain." 

"  I  can  go  up  on  foot  some  day,"  said  Leigh.  "  I  can  start 
early  in  the  morning  so  as  to  take  time  by  the  way." 

"  You  would  have  to  start  early  in  the  morning,  indeed,  if 
you  expected  to  return  by  night  —  early  in  the  morning  be- 
fore the  day  of   your  fancy.      Irazu  is  a  great  deceiver.     It 


THE  YOUNG  COFFEE  PLANTER  AT  HOME.        IOj 

would  take  you  two  days  for  the  journey,  and  you  would  not 
then  be  able  to  rest  long  by  the  way." 

"  Let  us  have  the  company  of  an  Indian  hunter,"  said 
Leigh,  "and  we  will  return  with  a  living  quetzal." 

"  I  will  go  with  you  myself,  with  a  peon  and  mules,"  said 
Hazel. 

It  was  an  ever  to  be  remembered  day  when  the  party  set 
out  very  early  in  the  morning  for  the  summit  of  Irazu,  1 1,000 
feet  above  the  sea  level,  and  some  6000  feet  from  their  point 
of  starting.  The  air  was  cool,  the  roads  hobbly,  but  lined 
with  Mowers.  Here  and  there  were  adobe  huts  covered  with 
dried  leaves  of  the  lofty  cocoanut  palm.  They  were  like 
little  gardens  of  flowers,  birds,  and  almost  naked  children. 

As  they  rose,  the  land  of  Costa  Rica  spread  out  wider  and 
wider  beneath  them  ;  its  verdant  valleys,  its  vast  forests,  its 
little  towns;  Cartago,  with  her  churches;  San  Jose  with  her 
quiet  domes  and  towers. 

After  a  long,  winding  journey,  which  became  very  fatiguing 
at  hist,  the\'  reached  the  summit  and  found  a  shelter  for  the 
night. 

They  rose  early  in  the  morning.  The  sky  was  clear.  The 
red  disc  of  the  sun  was  uplifting  an  arch  of  rosy  splendor  ot 
light  in  the  far  east,  over  the  opal-like  sea.  The  dim  waters 
oi  the  Atlantic  or  the  Caribbean  were  there.  How  vast,  how 
far ! 

They  turned  their  faces  to  the  west.  There  lay  the  serene 
Pacific,  a  long,  low  line  of  shaded  water  in  outlines  <>l  purple 
and  green.  Below  them  was  the  living  map  o|  Costa  Rica, 
or  land  ocean,  as  it  were,  of  mountains  and  hills,  and  valleys 
filled  with  tropical  life. 


104  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

They  stood  there  long  as  if  entranced.  But  a  mist  arose 
in  the  far  distances.  The  dim  Atlantic  disappeared ;  the 
Pacific  faded.  The  sun  came  up  in  majesty  and  glory,  such 
as  they  had  never  witnessed  before.  They  went  to  the  dark 
caverns  where  the  crater  had  been.  But  the  clays  of  the 
eruption  were  long  ago.     No  smoke  appeared  in  the  chimney. 

They  returned  by  the  way  of  some  bowery  woods,  but 
though  Leigh  scanned  the  cool  shades  and  saw  some  flaming 
orchids  there,  no  quetzals  appeared. 

Never  had  sleep  been  more  sweet  to  our  travellers  than  on 
the  night  after  their  descent  from  Irazu. 

A    SURPRISE    AFTER    DANGER. 

One  day  Leigh  noticed  a  curious  insect  in  his  room.  It 
seemed  to  be  tangled  up,  and  to  have  many  angles,  and  it 
looked  uncomfortable. 

He  came  out  on  the  veranda  and  said  to  Aleman,  — 

"  What  kind  of  an  insect  do  you  have  in  this  country  that 
looks  like  a  little  pile  of  sticks  ?  Come  with  me  to  my  room, 
and  I  will  show  you  one." 

Hazel  laughed  and  followed  him,  as  the  latter  returned  to 
his  room  and  looked  around. 

"  It  was  here,  but  I  do  not  see  it  now  ;  where  can  it  have 
gone  ?  " 

"I  am  not  an  especial  student  of  bugs,"  said  Hazel;  "but 
from  your  description  of  the  insect,  I  would  think  it  to  be  a 
scorpion." 

"  But  what  can  have  become  of  it?" 

"  I  do  not  know,  but  a  scorpion  likes  to  hide.  He  seeks 
seclusion  and  darkness.  " 


A    SURPRISE    AFTER    DANGER.  105 

"  Does  he  bite  ?  "  asked  Leigh. 

"  Not  unless  he  is  disturbed  in  some  way.  He  is  quite 
harmless  if  he  is  let  alone." 

"Is  his  bite  poisonous?"  continued  Leigh. 

"Yes;  it  is  said  to  be  so.  I  have  never  been  bitten, 
though  I  have  often  found  scorpions  in  my  rooms." 

"  Is  the  bite  of  the  scorpion  fatal?  " 

"  No,  not  necessarily.  There  are  remedies  against  the  poi- 
son. The  bite  sometimes  causes  temporary  paralysis  of  the 
hand,  or  of  some  part  of  the  body.  There  have  been  cases 
where  people  have  died  from  the  poison  of  the  scorpion. 
Such  things  are  not  common." 

"  I  should  think  that  the  insects  would  be  a  source  of 
constant  terror,"  said  Leigh. 

"Oh,  no!  Are  wasps  and  hornets  a  source  of  constant 
terror  to  people  in  the  States?  No,  you  do  not  think  about 
them.  When  I  was  at  a  farm-house  in  New  York,  there  was 
a  hornet's  nest  in  the  attic,  and  the  hornets  came  to  it  and 
went  from  it  through  a  lattice.  One  of  the  workpeople  slept 
in  the  attic.      He  was  never  stung." 

Leigh  searched  the  room  for  the  scorpion,  but  he  could 
not   find   him. 

"He  may  be  in  your  clothing,  hanging  on  the  wall,"  said 
Hazel. 

A  very  nervous  look  came  into  Leigh's  face.  He  searched 
his  clothing  very  carefully  indeed,  at  the  end  of  a  cane,  but 
no  scorpion  appeared.  He  changed  his  clothing  with  much 
caution  that  daw 

The  night  was  cool.  There  are  often  cool  nights  about 
the  region  of  Cartago.      Leigh   put  extra  clothing   upon   his 


106  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

iron-framed  bed.  He  sunk  into  rest,  and  slept,  and  dreamed 
blessed  dreams,  for  the  climate  under  Irazu  was  like  old 
New  England. 

In  the  morning  when  he  awoke  he  thought  of  the 
scorpion. 

Hazel  tapped  on  his  door.  He  brought  into  the  room 
some  cocoanut  water,   deliciously  flavored  and   prepared. 

"That  is  cool,"  said  Hazel.  "It  will  do  you  good  to 
drink  it  on  rising.  We  have  had  a  good  night,  but  we  will 
have  a  hot  day.     The  sun  is  rising  red." 

"  My  friend,  you  are  good  indeed  to  be  thinking  of  my 
comfort  so  much.  What  do  you  suppose  became  of  the 
scorpion  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know.  Scorpions  like  to  crawl  into  beds,  when 
a  cool  night  is  coming.  They  like  to  hide  under  woollens.  I 
wouldn't  wonder  if  he  were  somewhere  about  your  bed  now." 

"  Do  they  bite  people  in  bed  ?  "  asked  Leigh  in  alarm. 

"Not  unless  one  pushes  them,"  said  Hazel.  "Not  if 
one  lies  still.  Many  a  person  has  slept  with  a  scorpion  in 
his  bed,  and  did  not  know  it  until  he  rose  and  threw  back 
the  clothes." 

Leigh  leaped  up,  and  gathered  around  him  his  night- 
dress very  carefully.  He  stepped  upon  the  floor,  and  threw 
back  the  bedclothes. 

His  hands  darted  into  the  air. 

"Jumping  Jackson  !  "  he  said,  using  an  old  New  England 
term  of  surprise.  "  There  's  tlic  scorpion  noiv.  I've  been 
sleeping  with  Jiim  !  " 

"I  see,"  said  Hazel,  "and  you  did  not  harm  him.  He  has 
had  a  very  comfortable  night." 


A  SURPRISE  AFTER  DANGER.  IO7 

Leigh  visited  from  time  to  time  Costa  Rica's  beautiful 
city,  San  Jose,  and  spent  many  hours  in  the  Public  Gardens 
there,  now  studying  the  flowers,  now  admiring  the  historic 
monument,  now  watching  the  cloud  shadows  on  the  moun- 
tains. There  is  a  sense  of  beauty  everywhere  here.  Not 
only  that,  the  people  here  seem  happy.  Enterprise  mingles 
with  the  picturesque  life;  here  it  is  not  always  afternoon, 
as  it  seems  to  be  in  some  of  the  Republics  of  the  Sun. 

At  San  Jose,  Leigh  found  the  store  of  the  taxidermist,  and 
saw  the  mounted  figure  of  a  jaguar,  and  studied  its  beautiful 
spots.  The  mounted  animal  was  valued  at  a  hundred  dollars. 
The  taxidermist  had  been  engaged  in  collecting  animals  and 
birds  for  mounting  for  the  Guatemalan  national  exhibition 
and  for  the  Paris  exposition  of  1900. 

Leigh  saw  there  the  skin  of  an  ocelot,  which  he  thought 
very  beautiful. 

"Where  does  the  animal  live?"  he  asked  of  the  people 
in  the   store. 

"  In  the  trees,"   said  one. 

"  And  as  rare  to  find  as  the  quetzal,"  said  another. 

"  In  hunting  for  one,  a  person  sometimes  finds  the  other," 
said  another. 

"  Next  to  seeing  a  live  quetzal,"  said  Leigh,  "  I  would  like 
to  find  an  ocelot  alive." 

He  did,  and  in  an  unexpected  situation,  as  we  shall  see 
in    the   course   of   our   narrative. 


CHAPTER   X. 

APULA. 

AT  young  Aleman's  plantation  Leigh  met  a  very  singular 
character,  and  one  that  illustrates  that  true  worth  is  to 
be  found  everywhere.  This  person  was  an  old  india-rubber 
hunter  by  the  name  of  Apula.  He  was  a  Mosquito  Indian, 
and  belonged  to  the  tribe  that  the  English  had  pledged 
themselves  to  protect  in  the  famous  treaty  that  guaranteed 
neutrality  if  the  Nicaraguan  Canal  should  be  built. 

He  owned  a  boat,  and  in  this  he  made  excursions  into  Lake 
Nicaragua  and  into  the  rivers  of  the  lake  in  search  of  rubber 
trees,  which  he  tapped,  and  sold  the  rubber  to  the  comisarios 
or  dealers  in   rubber. 

His  home  was  not  far  from  Bluefields  on  the  Mosquito 
Coast,  and  he  from  time  to  time  travelled  up  and  down  the 
Mosquito  Coast  in  his  boat,  from  Livingston,  the  port  of 
Honduras,  to   Bocas  del  Toro. 

He  had  come  down  to  Port  Limon  in  his  boat,  and  gone  to 
Cartago  in  the  cars,  which  among  the  coast  Indians  are  a 
wonder. 

He  spoke  Spanish  imperfectly,  and  English  in  the  same 
way.  Sometimes  he  would  ask  unexpected  questions  and 
return  intelligible  answers  in  both  languages.  But  usually 
he  would  say  a  few  words  and  then  halt.      He  had  learned  to 

108 


APUI.A.  IOQ 

say  Tengo  la  bondad  and  to  follow  it  by  a  Spanish  verb 
in  the  infinitive  mood.  In  this  way  one  might  talk  in 
Spanish  infinitives.  But  usually  his  speech  in  Spanish  hesi- 
tated, and  he  made  signs  to  indicate  objects  and  omitted 
verbs. 

There  was  one  trait  of  character  that  Leigh  possessed  that 
makes  friends  in  all  lands  :  it  was  a  pleasure  for  him  to  stand 
aside  for  others.  It  fulfilled  in  a  perfectly  natural  way  the 
virtue  commended  in  the  Scriptures,  "  In  honor  preferring 
one  another." 

Apula,  the  Indian  boatman  and  rubber  hunter,  was  not  at 
first  sight  an  attractive  man.  Much  of  the  time  when  he  was 
in  the  forest,  he  was  almost  literally  a  rubber  man  ;  he  was 
content  with  rubber.  He  had  no  need  to  wear  rubber  shoes, 
the  rubber  became  a  part  of  his  feet.  He  needed  to  wear  no 
rubber  clothes,  the  rubber  juice  or  sap  adhered  to  him.  He 
was  very  tall,  very  thin,  and  his  muscles  were  like  metal. 

Hut  he  had  a  very  tender,  patient  expression  in  his  eyes 
and   about  his   mouth. 

He  came  to  Hazel's  coffee  farm  to  meet  a  rubber  comisario 
who  was  spending  a  week  or  more  there,  and  who  had  stores 
along  the  coast. 

He  stood  at  the  gate  of  the  quinta  in  his  rubber  and  rags. 
He  wore  a  tunic  made  of  coffee  bags,  and  this  had  become 
glued  with  rubber.  lie  had  a  band  about  his  head,  and  he 
carried  a  machete,  or  machette,  a  kind  of  cutlass,  as  all 
rubber  Indians  do. 

Leigh  was  sitting  on  the  long  veranda  of  the  quinta,  talk- 
ing with  a  loir  to,  or  parrot,  overhead,  when  he  first  saw  the 
Indian. 


IIO  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  figure  stood  beside  the  gatepost  of  the  adobe  wall,  and 
looked  like  a  statue.  Leigh's  honest  face  met  the  Indian's 
eyes  with  a  kindly  sympathy,  though  he  did  not  speak  a 
word. 

An  hour  passed.  Leigh  went  into  the  quinta,  and  came 
out  again,  but  the  Indian  still  stood  there.  There  were  men 
talking  with  the  comisario  under  the  cocoanut  trees,  and  the 
Indian  felt  his  humble  place  in  life,  and  was  willing  to  wait 
his  turn. 

The  sun  blazed  over  the  trees.  Still  the  Indian  stood  at 
the  gate.     The  comisario  saw  him  and  shouted  out,  — 

"  By  and  by,  Apula,"  and  continued  his  conversation 
with  the  men,  which  was  upon  the  politics  of  the  country. 

Another  hour  passed.  Leigh  began  to  pity  the  poor  Indian. 
It  seemed  unjust  to  him  to  keep  him  waiting  so  long  when 
he  was  not  an  unwelcome  visitor,  as  the  comisario's  words 
seemed  to  imply. 

A  large  pitcher  of  lime  water  was  brought  out  from  the 
tables,  and  the  beverage  offered  to  the  comisario  and  his 
friends.  The  drink  was  sugared  and  iced,  and  had  a  most 
delicious  appearance.  The  servant  passed  a  glass  of  it  to 
Leigh.  Just  then  Leigh  happened  to  look  towards  the  gate, 
and  his  eyes  again  met  the  eyes  of  the  Indian  in  his  gar- 
ments spotted  with  rubber. 

The  man  had  waited  more  than  two  hours  now.  His  face 
wore  the  same  patient,  kindly  expression.  Leigh's  heart  was 
touched;  he  felt  the  injustice  of  the  situation,  and  with  a 
genuine  New  England,  Thomas  Jefferson  impulse  he  went 
out  to  the  gate  and  held  out  his  glass  of  sugared  lime  water 
to  the  wayfarer. 


APULA.  I  [  I 

The  Indian's  eyes  melted.  He  had  seldom  met  that  kind 
of  courtesy  before.  Even  the  English  on  the  ships  that 
come  to  the  coast  did  not  treat  rubber  hunters  in  that  way. 

The  Indian  raised  his  dark  hand  and  said, — 

"  Gracias  —  no  sed"  (thanks  —  no  thirst). 

Leigh's  kindly  thought  of  the  Indian  drew  the  attention 
of  the  comisario. 

"You  are  a  true  American,"  said  the  comisario  to  Leigh. 
"  Mosquito  Indians  are  used  to  waiting."  He  arose  and  went 
to  the  gate,  and  had  a  long  talk  with  Apula. 

As  he  returned  to  the  seats  under  the  cocoanut  trees,  he 
said  :  — 

"The  old  boatman  says  that  he  will  never  forget  that 
American  boy.  You  have  won  a  true  heart  to-day,  Leigh, 
for  those  Indians  never  forget  a  favor,  and  they  are  not  used 
to  being  served  at  the  gate  with  cliicJia  by  white  men." 

Leigh  himself  saw7  nothing  out  of  the  common  in  this 
courtesy.  lie  had  been  brought  up  to  believe  that  his 
country  was  the  earth,  and  his  countrymen  were  all  man- 
kind. An  old  friend  of  his  uncle's,  Governor  Andrew,  used 
to  say, — 

"  I  know  not  what  record  of  sin  awaits  me  in  another 
world,  but  this  I  do  know,  I  never  yet  despised  a  man 
because  he  was  poor,  because  he  was  ignorant,  or  because 
he  was  black."  If  Leigh  saw  any  creature  in  need  of  what 
he  could  give,  he  gave  it,  and  he  found  more  pleasure  in  the 
act  than  in  anything  that  would  serve  himself. 

Leigh  had  made  an  impression  on  Apula  that  the  Indian 
would  never  forget.  Apula  would  find  Leigh  again.  1  lie 
heart   that   seeks   through    love,    has   little   sense   ot    space   or 


112  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

time.  Apula  knew  well  all  of  these  mid-American  countries, 
and  it  was  his  calling  to  travel  in  them  all. 

Leigh  wished  to  go  to  Nicaragua  by  the  way  of  the  old 
road  from  the  coast  over  the  mountains.  Me  had  once  heard 
some  agents  of  a  travelling  show  speak  of  this  route,  of  its 
perils,  but  also  of  the  remarkable  life  of  the  Indians,  beasts, 
and  birds  to  be  met  in  the  interior. 

He  talked  with  the  rubber  comisario  in  regard  to  the  jour- 
ney. The  collector  knew  it  well,  and  he  had  met  the  Rio 
Frios  and  other  tribes  of  Indians  on  the  rivers  in  the  dis- 
puted boundaries  of  Costa  Rica  and  Nicaragua. 

"  If  you  think  of  joining  a  party  to  the  coast  by  that  route, 
you  should  have  engaged  old  Apula  to  have  gone  with  you. 
There's  something  singular  about  that  old  Indian,  but  he  is 
honest.  Honor  is  born  in  some  people  ;  it  is  a  gift  of  the 
gods.  Apula  is  an  old  boatman,  and  you  would  need  such 
a  guide  as  he  after  you  reach  the  lake  country.  You  would 
need  a  river  guide  as  well  as  a  mountain  guide,  with  pack 
mules.  I  would  recommend  Apula  for  any  service  on  the 
coast  and  rivers." 

The  suggestion  had  a  singular  effect  on  Leigh.  The 
strange  figure  that  he  had  seen  at  the  gate  seemed  to  enter 
somehow  into  his  imagination,  and  he  said  to  himself,  "  If 
I  could  have  that  Indian  for  a  guide,  I  would  be  safe." 
Apula  had  gone  to  San  Jose. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

HAZEL'S    SCHOOL HIS    METHODS. 

"  A  YOUNG  man  should  have  a  purpose  in  life  beyond 
j~Y  mere  money-making,"  young  Hazel  used  to  say.  This 
purpose  in  him  found  expression  in  a  school  which  he  opened 
in  his  own  house  for  the  children  of  the  peons  who  worked 
on  the  coffee  plantations.  To  this  work  he  brought  his  father, 
who  had  been  an  instructor  in  a  German  town. 

The  old  German  schoolmaster  was  a  disciple  of  the  school 
system  of  Pestalozzi  and  Froebel.  He  held  that  education 
stands  for  character,  and  that  to  make  the  spiritual  man  is 
the  highest  of  all  callings  in  life.  He  believed  with  Froebel, 
that  every  child  had  some  special  gift  from  God,  and  that  the 
development  of  this  gift  was  the  sacred  work  of  the  teacher. 
He  was  a  lover  of  the  old  German  authors,  whom  Carlyle 
especially  commends,  and  greatly  quoted  Fichte,  and  that 
writer's  "  Way  to  the  Blessed  Life."  lie  followed  Froebel's 
method,  and  by  it  sought  to  put  the  principles  of  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount  into  the  conduct  of  the  child. 

Young  Hazel  had  begun  the  school  to  which  he  had 
brought  his  father.  It  consisted  of  a  kindergarten  for  the 
little  children,  and  a  lecture  school  for  the  working  people, 
among  whom  were  men  of  considerable  intelligence.  '1  he 
latter  was  held  in  the  cool  of  the  evening.  It  was  devoted 
to  historical  lectures,  literature,  morals,  and  music. 
i  "3 


114  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Some  of  young  Hazel's  methods  in  the  latter  school  were 
well  adapted  to  the  young  people  of  a  country  like  Costa 
Rica.  In  music  he  taught  his  pupils  the  national  songs  and 
folk  songs  of  all  countries,  and  made  these  the  texts  of  his- 
torical lectures. 

He  was  giving  a  course  of  lectures  when  Leigh  was  there, 
on  the  noblest  deeds  of  history.  The  Frobishers  were  quite 
intelligent  on  South  American  history ;  but  they  were  sur- 
prised at  some  of  the  pictures  which  Hazel  drew  of  the  patri- 
otism of  the  South  American  heroes,  whose  deeds  are  not 
widely  known.  He  gave  examples  of  Southern  heroes,  after 
the  manner  of  Plutarch's  Lives,  and  at  the  close  of  the  series 
of  lectures  he  required  the  class  to  answer  the  question, 
"  Which  of  these  heroes  was  the  greatest  ?  " 

The  class  in  this  case  decided  that  the  most  unselfish  acts 
were  the  greatest,  which  showed  the  moral  influence  of  his 
thought  training. 

He  made  his  lectures  picturesque  by  using  the  narrative 
style.     Let  me  retell  one  of  Hazel's  stories,  or  quinta  lectures. 

THE    BANNER    OF    THE    SUN.1 

It  was  New  Year's  Day  in  Mendoza,  at  the  foot  of  the 
high  Andes.  Over  the  city  of  the  pampas  loomed  Tupun- 
gato,  like  a  very  dome  of  the  earth,  white  and  glistening, 
with  the  condors  wheeling  below  at  the  point  of  the  rocky 
crags,  but  never  mounting  above  the  barren  crystal  heights. 
The  flowers  were  still  blooming  on  the  pampas,  although  it 
was  so  late  in  the  year,  but  there  was  eternal  winter  in  the 
silence  of  the  sky. 

1  This  story  tirst  appeared  in  "Success,"  and  is  used  by  permission. 


THE    BANNER    OF    THE    SUN.  I  I  5 

A  company  of  Spanish  and  Creole  ladies  had  gone  into 
the  chapel  of  the  earthquake-shattered  church.  They  were 
doing  their  benevolent  work  for  the  Army  of  the  Andes  that 
was  encamped  on  the  near  pampas. 

An  army  officer  dashed  by  on  a  splendid  horse.  Ma- 
noeuvring on  the  open  plain  stood  the  glittering  Army  of 
the  Andes,  that  might  be  seen  through  the  lace-work  of  the 
trees. 

"  Whither  go  they  ? "  asked  Dona  Mira  of  Lois  Beltram, 
a  wandering,  mendicant  friar.  She  knew  where  they  pur- 
posed to  go,  but  as  she  looked  up  to  the  white  walls  of 
the  Andes,  the  feat  for  which  they  were  preparing  seemed 
utterly  impossible. 

The  wandering  friar  was  one  of  the  strangest  men  in  all 
history.  Me  was  a  Sam  Adams  or  a  Benjamin  Franklin  of 
South  America.  He  was  filled  with  the  fire  of  liberty.  He 
had  ceased  to  care  for  himself,  and  gave  himself  wholly  to 
the  cause  of  the  emancipation  of  South  America  from  Spain. 

"Whither  go  they,  Dona  Mira?  Why  do  you  ask?  Go 
they?  go  they?  They  are  going  into  the  sky,  and  over  the 
Andes,  and  they  will  descend  from  the  sky  like  the  condor, 
and  woe  be  to  the  prey  on  that  day  !  Whither  go  the}'  ? 
They  go  to  the  stars  for  the  liberation  of  the  fairest  land 
on  all  the  earth!  This  year,  Dona  Mira,  San  Martin  will 
accomplish  the  miracle  of  the  world,  he  will  cause  the  Andes 
to  bow  down  before  him,  he  will  move  the  mountains,  and 
make  South  America  free  !  " 

"And  how  dost  thou  know,  Friar  Lois  Beltram  ? " 

"Know?  because  to  a  soul  like  his  nothing  is  impossible. 
Lven    Hannibal    crossed    the  Alps,  and    Napoleon   followed 


Il6  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

him,  and  the  Corsican  said  that  '  impossible  '  is  the  adjec- 
tive of  fools.  Dona,  did  not  Cxsar  say  that  if  Nature  her- 
self impeded  his  march,  he  would  compel  her  to  obey  ? 
These  were  men  without  faith  except  in  the  human  will. 
Dona,  General  San  Martin  has  a  higher  faith  than  that. 
Did  you  ever  hear  his  motto  of  life?" 

"  No,  Friar  Beltram.  What  may  that  be  ?  He  will  need 
to  follow  a  high  motto  indeed  if  he  carries  out  his  purpose, 
which  is  now  plain." 

"  Listen,  Dona  Mira.  This  is  New  Year's  Day.  The 
Don  San  Martin's  motto  is  a  good  one  for  this  New  Year's 
Day.     It  is  this,  — 

"  '  Seras  lo  que  debes  ser,  y  sino  no  seras  nada  '  (Thou  must 
be  that  which  thou  oughtest  to  be,  and  without  that  thou 
shalt  be  nothing)." 

"Those  are  marvellous  words,  Friar." 

"They  are  words  of  life.  He  has  made  me,  friar  that  I 
am,  director  of  the  forges  and  arsenals.  That  will  unfrock 
me,  if  I  serve.  '  But  I  am  no  Vulcan,'  I  protested,  when 
he  suggested  this  appointment ;  '  I  am  only  a  wandering 
monk.' 

"  Then  he  pointed  to  the  Andes  as  they  rose  up  in  the 
morning  sun,  '  Can  it  be  done  ? '  he  said  to  me.  I  answered, 
'Yes,  Don  San  Martin.'  Then,  as  his  sword  flashed  out, 
he  cried,  — 

"  '  TJiou  must  be  that  ivliich  thou  oughtest  to  be  —  power 
lies  in  that  way  ! '  " 

Dona  Mira  looked  up  at  the  Andes. 

"  Look,  look,  Dona  Mira.  Those  are  the  walls  that  we 
are  to  take.     We  must  scale  the  walls  of  God." 


THE    BANNER    OF    THE    SUN.  II^ 

Twenty-one  thousand  feet  the  Andes  gleamed  above  them, 
and  the  lowest  pass  was  twelve  or  more  thousand  feet  high. 
Pouring  down  their  sides  into  the  semi-tropical  gardens  of 
balm  and  bloom,  were  the  melting  torrents.  The  work  of 
the  ages  of  the  creation  was  there,  when  the  volcanoes  were 
forges,  and  mountains  rose  from  the  caverns  and  sunk  into 
valleys  of  fire.  The  world  of  the  cacti  and  thorny  plants 
was    there,    underneath    the    white    walls    of    eternal  snows. 

The  snow  was  gleaming  on  the  high  Cordillera  in  blind- 
ing splendor. 

"  Doha  Mira,  for  that  expedition  we  shall  need  a  banner 
of  the  sun.  I  am  going  to  take  off  my  frock  to  weld  weapons. 
Not  the  cloister,  but  the  great  valley  of  the  fires  of  the 
forges,  where  weapons  are  to  be  made  to  free  mankind  from 
chains,  is  to  be  my  place  of  service.  Heaven  wills  it  so. 
Dona,  have  you  faith  that  Don  San  Martin  can  ever  lead  an 
army  over  the  walls  of  the  Andes?" 

"  Friar  Bertram,  I  have.     This  year  shall  see  it  done." 

"  I  have  made  my  Xew  Year's  resolution  ;  it  is  that  of 
San  Martin.  I  must  be  that  which  I  ought  to  be,  and  with- 
out that  /  shall  be  nothing.      I  go  to  my  forges!  " 

"  Friar,  I  will  go  and  call  my  ladies,  and  we  will  make 
here  a  banner  of  the  sun.  This  year  I  will  take  God  at  I  lis 
word,  and  put  my  faith  in  the  heavens.  Faith  can  cause 
mountains  to  move,  faith  in  man  can  do  much,  faith  in  God 
everything.  I  thank  thee  for  this  New  Year's  motto,  Friar 
Heltram.  We  must  be  that  which  we  ought  to  be,  and  with- 
out that  we  shall  be  nothing." 

On  the  17th  of  January,  1  <S  1 7,  there  was  a  high  holi- 
day at    Mendoza,   the    bowery    and    beautiful    city  under   the 


Il8  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Andes,  on  the  plain  of  Argentina.  The  streets  were  bloom- 
ing with  flags.  That  day  the  whole  Army  of  the  Andes, 
headed  by  General  San  Martin,  who  has  been  called  the 
"greatest  of  Creoles,"  were  to  march  through  the  town,  and 
were  to  receive  from  the  ladies  a  flag,  to  be  borne  at  their 
head  as  they  were  to  attempt  to  march  over  the  Andes  for 
the  liberation  of  Chili  and  Peru. 

The  cannon  thundered,  and  the  thunder  was  echoed 
back  from  the  walls  of  the  Andes.  San  Martin  swept  up 
to  the  chapel  on  his  charger,  and  the  women  gave  him  the 
flag  that  they  had  made.  It  was  a  banner  with  the  figure 
of  the  sun.      "  Bear  it  up  to  the  sun,"  said  Dona  Mira. 

San  Martin  dismounted  and  ascended  a  platform  in  the 
great  square,  or  plaza.  He  waved  the  flag  over  his  head 
in  the   sunlight,   and  cried,  — 

"This  is  the  first  flag  of  independence  that  has  ever  been 
raised  for  the  country  !  " 

"  Viva  la  Patria .'"  rose  from  the  army  and  the  people. 

"  Soldiers,"  he  cried,  and  we  use  his  exact  words,  if  tra- 
dition may  be  followed,  "swear  to  maintain  it,  and  to  die  in 
defence  of  it,  as  I  now  swear  !  " 

The  army  made  the  oath.  The  cannon  boomed ;  the 
musketry  rolled,  and  was  echoed  from  the  crags.  That  was 
a  great  day  of  faith  for  South  America  and  the  Austral 
world. 

Whither  go  they  ? 

Over  the  Cordillera  with  the  flag  of  the  sun;  the  flag 
of  redemption  for  one-half  of  South  America. 

On  the  5th  of  April  the  Army  of  the  Andes  stood  on  the 
plain  of   Maipo.      It  had  come  down  upon  the  Spaniards  like 


THE    BANNER    OF    THE    SUN.  I  19 

a  condor  from  the  sky,  and  had  won  a  victory.  The  frozen 
bodies  of  some  of  the  soldiers  who  perished  in  that  march 
over  the  Andes  were  found  years  afterwards  on  heights 
where  the  condors  had  not  sought  them. 

The  morning  that  found  the  army  on  the  plain  of  Maipo 
was  overcast.  At  last  the  heavens  opened,  and  the  sun 
gleamed  on  the  white  summits  of  the  high  Andes  and 
streamed  over  the  army.  It  shone  on  the  flag  of  the  sun. 
San  Martin  saw  it  and  hailed  it  as  an  omen. 

"The  enemy  are  ours,"  said  the  greatest  of  the  Creoles. 

"Yes,"  said  Friar  Beltram,  "the  enemy  are  ours." 

The  Spanish  power  in  South  America  received  its  death 
blow  on  that  clay.  The  arms  made  in  part  by  Friar  Lois 
Beltram  drove  the  Spaniards  to  the  sea. 

What  a  motto  was  that  of  San  Martin  for  a  New  Year's 
resolution!  The  achievement  of  what  men  call  "impossible  " 
is  but  the  attainment  of  what  is  possible  under  the  higher 
law  of  faith. 

San  Martin  won  the  independence  of  Chili.  The  coun- 
try offered  him  ten  thousand  ounces  of  gold  as  a  reward, 
but  he  refused  it.      "  I  did  not  fight  for  gold,"  he  said. 

He  must  be  that  which  he  ought  to  be. 

He  won  the  independence  of  Peru.  The  Spanish  Peru- 
vians offered  him  the  supreme  power,  the  Incarial  crown. 
"  I  have  achieved  the  independence  of  Peru,"  he  said,  "and  I 
have  ceased  to  be  a  public  man." 

lie  went  over  the  sea,  from  these  republics  whose  inde- 
pendence he  had  gained,  Argentina,  Chili,  Peru,  and 
lived  an  exile,  and  died  in  poverty,  and  ten  years  afterwards 
was   crowned   dead,  as   il   were,    his   remains   being  enthroned 


120  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

in  that  glorious  temple  of  Buenos  Ayres  known  as  the  tomb  of 
San  Martin.  The  Austral  world  can  never  forget  the  opening 
of  the  year  1817  at  Mendoza  and  the  Banner  of  the  Sun. 

The  world  is  full  of  disappointed  men  ;  but  San  Martin 
in  his  poverty  and  exile  was  not  of  them.  No  man  will  ever 
be  disappointed  who  finds  his  happiness  in  spiritual  things 
or  in  the  good  of  others. 

Face  the  Andes  of  life  with  the  motto  of  San  Martin,  the 
greatest  of  Creoles.  To  live  is  better  than  to  gain  ;  to  lift, 
better  than  to  lean.  What  is  there  that  is  not  possible  to 
a  high  purpose  in  life  ? 

"  Seras  lo  que  debes  ser,  y  sino,  110  seras  nada  !  " 

"This  is  not  the  life  to  which  heaven  is  promised,"  wrote 
Dr.  Johnson  at  New  Year's,  on  reviewing  a  year  of  irresolu- 
tion. That  which  ought  not  to  be  will  not  be;  it  has  the 
gravitation  of  oblivion. 

Would  it  not  be  well  for  you  to  write  in  your  diary  on 
January  1,  1898,  — 

"  /  will  be  that  ivJiich  I  ought  to  be,  for  without  that  I 
shall  be  nothing." 

Hazel  led  the  exercises  of  the  Songs  of  all  Lands  with  a 
beautiful  adaptation  of  the  supposed  hymn  of  Columbus  at 

sea  :  — 

*'  Ave.  Maris  Stella, 

Star  forever  fair. 
Light  of  hope  immortal. 
In  the  heavenly  air. 

Star  of  stars,  and  Light  Eternal, 

Lead  us  on  across  the  sea. 
Salve  !  salve  !   we  are  exiles 

From  the  world,  hut  not  from  Thee. 
Salve  !  salve  ! 


HAZELS    SCHOOL.  121 

"  Ave,  Maris  Stella, 

Help  our  weak  endeavor, 
Till,  redeemed  by  Jesu, 
We  are  thine  forever. 

Star  of  stars,  and  Light  Eternal, 

Lead  us  on  across  the  sea. 
Salve  !  salve  !  we  are  exiles 
From  the  world,  but  not  from  Thee. 
Salve  !  salve  ! 

"Now  to  God,  all  glorious, 
One  and  Blessed  Three, 
On  the  land  and  ocean 
Endless  glory  be  ! 

Salve  !  salve  ! 

Amen  ! " 

He  had  secured  a  library  of  the  books  that  he  desired  the 
young  people  to  read,  putting  Plutarch's  Lives  at  the  head 
of  the  list  of  biography. 

As  a  result  of  this  reading,  he  required  his  pupils,  young 
and  adult,  to  relate  the  incidents  of  heroism  that  most 
greatly  interested  them.  They  were  thus  lead  to  study  biog- 
raphy for  the  highest  expressions  of  character  in  life. 

In  one  of  these  exercises,  a  pupil  related  in  verse  the 
following  tale  from  American-Mexican  history:  — 


THE    BROTHERS. 


"  Halt  !     Stay  your  j*uns  and  let  me  speak, 
A  wounded  man  ve  need  not  tear; 
My  breath  is  short,  my  pulse  is  weak, 
Mv  last  word.-,  shall  he  lew        hut  hear  ! 


122  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 


"Two  brothers  were  we,  Juan  and  I, 

But  one  in  heart  were  ever ; 
Our  home  was  on  the  plain  hard  by 

The  Rio  Grande  River. 
My  life  was  Juan's,  and  his  was  mine, 

And  other  men  were  strangers, 
'Till  from  the  cool  lands  of  the  pine 

Came  down  the  Border  Rangers  ; 
And  then  we  boldly  joined  and  leapt 

O'er  the  Sierra  Madre, 
And  down  to  Buena  Vista  swept 

With  them  to  El  Salada. 


'My  brother  had  a  wife  and  child, 

And  made  a  home  for  mother ; 
A  happy  household  on  him  smiled, 

And  I  was  but  a  brother. 
You  made  us  prisoners  —  Juan  and  I, 

And  loyal  fear  to  waken. 
You  one  in  five  condemned  to  die, 

Of  all  the  captives  taken. 
We  heard  the  general's  stern  decree 

Read  by  your  chief.  Espada, 
I  looked  at  Juan,  he  looked  at  me  — 

Remember  El  Salada  ! 


"You  put  fifty  seeds  in  a  sack 

From  some  near  peon's  acres  ; 
Of  those  frijoles  ten  were  black. 

And  doomed  to  death  their  takers. 
Blindfolded  then  our  fates  we  drew, 

While  prayed  the  padre  holy; 
I  oped  my  hand  my  lot  to  view  — 

I'd  drawn  a  white  frijole. 


THE    BROTHERS.  123 

And  Juan —  I  saw  his  bandage  fall, 

I  saw  his  eyelids  quiver, 
I  saw  him  turn  his  face  from  all 

Towards  Rio  Grande  River ; 
I  saw  his  heart  beat  in  his  veins, 

While  the  Sierra  Madre 
Gleamed  out  in  sunset's  golden  reins  — 

Remember  El  Salada  ! 

v. 

"He  shut  his  hand  as  hard  as  death. 

And  whispered,  "Wife,  son,  mother.1 
I  touched  my  hand  'gainst  his  warm  hand, 

As  I  might  touch  no  other : 
Juan's  blood  was  mine,  and  mine  was  his, 

Though  I  was  but  a  brother : 
My  veins  were  his  and  his  were  mine. 

Oh,  how  I  felt  our  fingers  twine  ! 
And  when  our  hands  unlocked,  unclasped, 

I  felt  a  feeling  holy, 
In  his  hand  was  the  white  seed  grasped, 

In  mine  the  black  frijole. 
He  sudden  saw  what  I  had  done, 

His  white  lips  whispered  •Brother!' 
I  answered  him  in  his  own  words, 

Of  •  wife  '  and  *  son  '  and  'mother.' 
I  looked  at  Juan,  he  looked  at  me, 

And  on  us  looked  Espada, 
I  kissed  Juan's  hand  —  I  cannot  see  — 

Remember  El  Salada  ! 

VI. 

"  I'm  blind  with  tears  —  I  cannot  see  — 
I  hear  the  clarinas  singing. 
And  o'er  the  hacienda,  tree. 

The  Angelus  is  ringing. 
I  kissed  tin-  hand  t<>  which  I'd  given 
Mv  life  for  w  ife  and  mother ; 


124  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

And  filled  my  heart  a  peace  like  Heaven 
To  hear  him  say  '  My  Brother  ! ' 

He  said  no  more,  but  turned  his  eyes 
Towards  the  Sierra  Madre, 

Where  sunset  gleamed  like  Paradise  — 
Remember  El  Salada  ! 


"  Espada  rode  along  the  line, 

My  hand  a  black  seed  spotted, 
They  led  me  forth  at  dusky  eve, 

To  face  the  carbines  shotted, 
The  stroke  of  judgment  to  receive, 

To  meet  the  doom  allotted. 
I  felt  like  one  who  blindly  treads 

The  holy  of  the  holies. 
They  drew  the  black  caps  o'er  our  heads 

Who'd  drawn  the  black  frijoles. 
And  then  the  place  was  still  as  death, 

Save  some  far  bell  tower  ringing, 
Or  passing  of  some  spent  wind's  breath, 

Or  lone  clarina  singing. 
'  U)iol '  we  heard  the  captain's  word  ; 

'  Dos  I '  was  the  dim  air  sobbing? 
'  Tresl '  I  was  shot  —  no  muscle  stirred  — 

And  yet  my  heart  seemed  throbbing. 
The  far  Red  River  seemed  to  whirl 

Around  me.  crimson  turning. 
And  o'er  me  gleamed  a  cross  of  pearl 

Amid  the  twilight  burning. 
I  knew  no  more  till  midnight  came, 

I  oped  my  eyes,  and  o'er  me 
The  low  stars  shone  ;   the  campfire's  flame 

Leaped  red.  a  mile  before  me. 
I  rose  and  ran  ;   I  climbed  the  hills  ; 

Gained  the  Sierra  Madre; 
My  burning  brain  the  memory  fills  — 

Remember  El  Salada  ! 


THE    BROTHERS.  I25 


"You  found  me  "mid  the  cacti  cool, 

Hard  by  the  mountain  willow, 
My  bed  the  shadowy  earth,  a  pool 

Of  clotted  blood  my  pillow. 
You  know  your  orders  well,  and  I 

Respect  them,  as  another  ; 
If  not  a  hero's  death.  1  die 

True-hearted  as  a  brother. 
My  brother's  blood  is  more  to  me 

Than  mine  which  I  surrender, 
I  have  no  wife,  or  son.  but  he 

Shares  hearts  as  mine  as  tender. 
I've  loved  him  more  than  self  he  knows, 

And  on  the  Sierra  Madre 
My  lonely  grave  will  ope  and  close  — 

Remember  El  Salada  ! 


"  Ay,  ope  my  breast  —  make  ready  now  ; 

L'710 —  dos —  wait  —  stand  steady  ! 
My  head  is  free,  and  free  my  brow. 

And  Heaven  is  clear —  I'm  read)'. 
My  soul  shall  mount  where  heroes  go, 

From  earth's  o'ershadowed  portal; 
God's  sunset  temples  o'er  me  glow 

In  peace  and  love  immortal. 
Farewell.  <)  Rio  Grande's  tide! 

Farewell.  Sierra  Madre  ! 
Now  —  read}'  !  —  hold  — 

Tell  —  Juan        I        died 
For  him  at  HI  Salada. 

You  raise  your  guns  with  trembling  hands 
Uno      dos —  men  be  heroes  ! 

(Jno  —  dos —  trei  !  O  earth,  farewell  ! 
Farewell,  O  campancros  !  " 


126  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 


Three  black-mouthed  carbines  shook  the  hills 

Of  the  Sierra  Madre, 
The  cacti  there  with  life  blood  wet, 
Three  soldiers  left  behind,  as  set 

The  sun  of  El  Salada  ! 


CHAPTER    XII. 


A    PARTY    FOR    THE    FORESTS. 


THE  Frobishers  made  the  acquaintance  of  a  former  con- 
sular agent,  a  Air.  Ladd,  whom  we  will  call  the  Ameri- 
can. This  man  was  about  to  go  to  the  Pacific  coast  and  to 
cross  the  mountains  with  an  Italian  doctor  to  Granada,  in 
Nicaragua,  the  very  ancient  city  that  had  been  partly  de- 
stroyed by  Walker,  the  adventurer. 

The  Italian's  name  was  Zano,  but  we  will  call  him  the 
doctor.  The  American  and  the  doctor  were  naturalists, 
and  were  looking  for  some  advantageous  situation  for  coffee 
and  banana  plantations,  and  the  doctor  was  interested  in 
studying  certain  rare  medicinal   plants. 

The  two  had  engaged  a  Mosquito  Indian  to  accompany 
them  as  a  guide,  whom  we  will  call  the  guide.  The  latter 
had  arranged  to  take  with  him  some  mules  and  dogs. 

A  little  black  boy,  named  Alio,  who  had  landed  at  Port 
Limon  from  Jamaica,  and  who  was  so  timid  at  times  that  he 
was  called  Little  A  (Paid,  and  so  bold  at  times  that  the  words 
were  given  another  meaning,  had  been  engaged  as  a  ser- 
vant. 

A  portly  Pnglishman,  by  the  name  ot  Ilobbs,  wished  to  go 
with  the  party,  lie  was  simply  a  natural  traveller.  lie  had 
been  almost  everywhere;  hut  from  his  timidity  one  would 
suppose  that  he  had  been  nowhere.      He  was  a  great-hearted, 

I27 


128  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

good-humored  man,  but  he  was  constantly  taking  alarm. 
Many  people  in  different  countries  had  said  to  him,  "  Mr. 
Hobbs,  you  ought  never  to  go  away  from  home." 

"There  is  as  much  danger  there  as  anywhere,"  he  would 
answer.  "  The  chimney  might  fall  down  on  me  there,  who 
can  tell  ?  "  He  would  laugh  and  say,  "  The  only  way  to  get 
out  of  the  way  of  danger  is  to  keep  going." 

He  would  sometimes  give  his  history  in  this  way:  — ■ 

"  My  father  followed  the  sea,  and  his  father  before  him, 
and  I  like  to  see  the  world  —  I  inherit  a  love  of  being  in 
motion.  Am  I  sea-sick  ?  Yes,  yes,  always  once  on  a  voy- 
age. But  what  are  a  few  days  of  sickness  to  the  pleasures 
of  a  voyage  !  Have  I  ever  had  adventures  ?  Ask  Simple 
Simon.  Yes,  yes;  but  I  treat  everybody  just  right,  and  feel 
kindly  towards  all  people,  and  my  escapes  are  equal  to  my 
adventures.  This  is  a  good  world  to  good-hearted  people. 
Folks  laugh  at  me  because  I  take  care  of  myself,  and  call 
me  Mr.  Careful  and  all  that.  But  I  love  to  see  a  new  coun- 
try ;  nothing  makes  me  so  happy  as  that.  What  is  there  so 
interesting  in  the  world  as  folks  ?  " 

Leigh  had  formed  a  very  kindly  friendship  with  Mr.  Ladd, 
the  former  consular  agent,  and  when  he  learned  of  this  expe- 
dition to  go  over  the  mountains  to  old  Granada,  in  Nicara- 
gua, he  wished  to  join  it. 

He  approached  his  uncle  on  the  subject. 

"  I  would  be  perfectly  willing  to  trust  you  with  Mr.  Ladd," 
said  Captain  Frobisher,  "  and  I  have  perfect  confidence  in 
the  character  of  'much  afraid'  Mr.  Hobbs.  A  man  who 
laughs  over  his  mishaps  as  the  generous  Englishman  does, 
is  to  be  trusted  ;   he  is  a  man  whose  home  is  the  world  ;  some 


A    PARTY    FOR    THE    FORESTS.  I  29 

Englishmen  are  like  him  ;  they  are  never  content  unless  they 
are  out  of  doors  in  some  new  place.  The  party  seems  a  safe 
one.  I  am  willing  that  you  should  join  it;  but  as  for  me  I 
will  take  the  boat  from  Port  Limon  to  Greytown,  and  the 
river  boat  up  the  San  Juan  to  Granada,  and  we  will  meet 
there.     Alonzo,  will  you  go  with  Leigh  or  with  me?" 

"  I  will  go  with  you,  Uncle.  I  am  looking  for  coffee  ports 
rather  than  plantations ;  for  the  article  itself,  after  it  has 
been  raised.  Leigh  is  as  safe  with  Mr.  Ladd  as  he  could  be 
with  us.  He  likes  birds  and  flowers,  and  if  the  royal  trogon 
is  to  be  found  in  the  forests  of  this  part  of  the  country,  he 
will  find  it." 

So  it  was  settled  that  Leigh  and  Alonzo  should  sep- 
arate here,  and  that  Alonzo  should  go  with  his  uncle  back 
to  Port  Limon,  and  thence  to  Greytown  and  up  the  San 
Juan. 

Mr.  Ladd's  party  was  to  go  to  the  coast  from  San  Jose 
over  the  route  that  General  Casement,  from  the  States,  is  now 
surveying  for  a  railroad,  and  thence  up  the  coast,  and  over 
the  old  Nicaragua  road.  The  way  is  long  and  perilous. 
Passengers  to  the  Nicaragua  Lakes,  from  Costa  Rica,  go  to 
Punta  Arenas,  and  up  the  coast  to  Corinto,  and  to  Greytown 
through  the  lakes.  The  way  is  a  safe  one,  and  takes  in  the 
ancient  cities  of  Nicaragua,  by  boat  and  rail,  Leon,  Mana- 
gua, and  Granada.  New  railways  are  planned  along  the  con- 
necting points  of  this  line,  which  will  one  day  be  a  famous 
highway  of  travel.  The  steamers  from  San  Francisco  con- 
nect at  Corinto  with  points  on  the  Pacific  coast,  with  Panama, 
Callao,  Peru,  and  Valparaiso,  Chili,  and  some  ot  them  go 
around  the  Horn. 


I30  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Strangely  enough,  Leigh  met  old  Apula  again  at  San  Jose. 
He  told  Mr.  Lack!  what  the  eomisario  had  said  of  him. 

"  I  will  engage  him  as  a  river  pilot,  a  second  guide,"  said 
Mr.  Ladd.     "Our  guide  is  a  Mosquito  Indian." 

Leigh  sought  and  found  the  Indian  again  in  San  Jose. 

Apula  accepted  Mr.  Ladd's  proposal  with  dancing  eyes. 

The  way  was  to  be  by  Punta  Arenas  on  the  Gulf  of 
Nicoya,  the  Gulf  of  Pearls,  and  although  it  was  less  easy  than 
by  the  way  of  the  sea,  Corinto,  Leon,  and  Managua,  it  would 
reveal  to  the  travellers  the  primitive  country.  They  could 
thus  reach  Rivas,  and  go  to  Granada  by  the  lake,  or  go 
directly  to  Granada  by  slow  journeys  under  careful  guides. 

To  find  Granada  over  this  perilous  way,  they  left  the  coast, 
and  were  soon  in  the  virgin  forests,  and  a  new  life  indeed 
began  to  open  before  them. 

Their  principal  guide  could  speak  both  English  and  Span- 
ish, as  he  had  seen  service  on  the  English  trading  ships  at 
the  docks.  He  had  met  Apula  before,  and  the  two  were 
friendly. 

Apula  at  first  talked  but  little  with  Leigh,  but  he  sought  to 
be  near  him.  His  first  introduction  to  Leigh,  as  his  special 
friend,  was  made  in  four  English  words,  — 

"My  heart  knows  you.1' 

He  laid  his  hand  over  his  heart,  in  a  humble  way.  The 
next  day  he  added  four  more  English  words  to  his  expres- 
sion  of   friendship,  — 

••  1  lie  near  vou." 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


THE    WONDERS    OF    THE    FOREST    BEGIN. 


IT  was  an  odd  party,  the  old  English  gentleman,  who  rode 
on  a  mule,  the  Italian  explorer  and  doctor,  the  principal 
guide,  the  American  traveller,  Leigh,  and  the  Mosquito 
Indian  guide,  Apula,  and  his  cargo  mule.  They  were  going 
into  a  land  of  wonder,  the  mountain-shadowed  byways  of 
Costa  Rica  and  Nicaragua,  and  the  surprises  only  a  few  miles 
from  San  Jose  began  to  appear.  Leigh  found  himself  in  a 
new,  strange  world.  After  leaving  the  coast,  the  wonders  of 
the  forest  began. 

Beyond  the  brushwood,  which  grew  where  the  forests  had 
been  cut  down,  opened  a  vast  aerial  botanical  garden.  The 
trunks  of  the  great  trees  were  encircled  in  ferns,  and  the 
limbs  were  hung  with  gorgeous  orchids,  fit  to  be  the  palace 
of  the  royal  bird  of  the  Aztecs.  Lianas  ran  across  the  ways, 
and  made  a  network  erf  gorgeous  glooms,  in  whose  roots  and 
rooms  surprises  of  birds,  animals,  and  insects  constantly 
appeared. 

Parrots  in  pairs  here  seemed  low:  making.  Tanagers  in 
black  and  red  drew  after  them  the  eye.  Insects  darted  hither 
and  thither,  like  flowers  or  gems  of  the  air.  Oncer  beetles 
caused  Leigh  to  step  aside:  and  to  ask  questions  oi  the 
Mosquito  guide,  to  receive  the  same   answer  always:  — 


132  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"No,  sc,  Senor."  Bugs,  with  protective  resemblances, 
which  looked  like  the  plant  whose  little  world  they  occupied, 
were  pointed  out  by  the  quick-eyed  Italian  doctor,  here  and 
there.  Hairy  spiders,  which  Leigh  took  for  tarantulas,  ran 
out  of  the  footway,  but  left  fearful  suggestions  in  our  young 
traveller's  mind. 

The  old  English  gentleman  was  terrified  at  every  new 
object,  and  constantly  said,  — 

"  I  am  glad  I  am  on  a  mule,  as  hard  as  is  the  saddle." 

His  happiness  in  this  respect  was  destined  to  be  disturbed, 
when  the  forests  began  to  reveal  the  inhabitants  in  the  tree- 
tops. 

One  of  the  first  surprises  which  greatly  terrified  the  old 
English  gentleman  was  when  the  Mosquito  Indian  cried  out,  — 

"  De  armie  is  coming  — it  devour  everything  before  it." 

"  What  is  that  ?  "  asked  the  Englishman. 

"  He  means  the  ecitons,"  said  the  American. 

"What  are  those?"  asked  the  Englishman.  "They  do 
not  devour  people,  I   hope." 

"  Not  until  they  have  bled  them,"  said  the  Italian.  "  Here 
they  come,  thousands  of  them,  with  their  generals  in  front 
and  ambulances  in  the  rear." 

"  You  alarm  me  without  cause,"  said  the  Englishman.  "  I 
see  no  army  anywhere." 

He  looked  up  into  the  arcades  of  lianas,  leaves,  and  blooms. 

A  monkey  sat  grinning  at  him  there.  When  he  looked 
down  again,  the  earth  around  him  seemed  crawling.  All  the 
dust  appeared  to  be  in  motion,  like  the  earth-waves  at  an 
earthquake. 

"The  army  ant,"  said  the  Mosquito. 


THE    WONDERS    OF    THE    FOREST    BEGIN.  1 33 

Grasshoppers,  spiders,  insects,  and  small  birds  were  flying 
hither  and  thither.  The  insects  were  leaping  into  the  air,  to 
escape  the  ants,  and  the  birds  were  catching  them  as  they 
leaped. 

The  Englishman  stopped  his  mule  and  cried  out,  — 

"  My  heyes  !  "  (eyes). 

The  ants  caught  the  insects  in  their  way,  tore  them  to 
pieces,  and  sent  their  remains  to  the  rear,  which  seemed  to  be 
a  kind  of  baggage-train. 

The  Italian  made  a  fire  in  the  way,  and  the  whole  party 
stopped  to  see  the  army  pass. 

Leigh  went  to  the  Englishman  and  leaned  on  the  saddle. 

"  See  there,"  said  the  Englishman,  "  how  much  some  ani- 
mals know.  See  those  spiders  climbing  the  bushes.  They 
will  escape  —  how  fast  they  go  !  " 

But  no,  they  did  not  escape.  The  ecitons  ran  up  the 
bushes  after  them.  They  ran  to  the  end  of  the  twigs.  The 
ecitons  followed  them.  They  were  obliged  to  drop  to  the 
earth  into  the  army.  The  ecitons  seized  and  devoured  them, 
and  added  them  to  their  spoil. 

"That  is  too  bad,"  said  the  Englishman.  "It  is  the  first 
time  that  I  ever  pitied  a  spider." 

"The  army  of  the  ants  is  not  more  merciless  than  human 
armies  have  been,"  said  Leigh. 

The  army  was  marching  on.      It  passed. 

There  was  one  spider  that  escaped  in  view  of  the  English- 
man and  Leigh.  It  wove  a  silk  threa  1  out  ol  itself,  as  it 
seemed,  and  hung  suspended  between  the  earth  and  the 
bush,  until  the  army  had  gone  by,  when  it  lowered  itselt  to 
the  desolate  track  of    the  march,  evidently  rejoicing. 


134  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  Sec  what  prudence  can  do,"  said  the  Englishman.  "This 
is  a  queer  world.  I  wonder  what  I  will  see  next  ?  Suppose 
an  army  of  beasts,  or  snakes,  or  something  that  no  one  ever 
heard  of  before,  should  come  upon  us,  as  the  ants  came 
upon  the  insects.  I  begin  to  wish  I  hadn't  come.  Who  can 
tell  where  that  Mosquito  Indian  may  lead  us?" 

Monkeys  were  gibbering  in  the  trees. 

"  They  never  form  an  army,  do  they,  Senor  Mosquito, 
and  fall  upon  unprotected  travellers  ?  " 

The  guide  laughed  at  being  addressed  in  this  queer  way. 
He  had  probably  never  been  called  "Senor"  before. 

An  army  of  curious  monkeys  filled  the  trees,  a  city  of 
them.  Parrots  of  splendid  plumage  gathered  with  them. 
There  were  monkeys  and  parrots  everywhere. 

With  them  some  trogons  appeared,  their  metallic  lustres 
gleaming  in  the  stray  sunbeams. 

"  Suppose  they  were  all  to  fall  upon  us  at  once,"  said  the 
Englishman,  "and  that  the  snakes  should  unite  with  them, 
what  would  happen  ?  " 

"  Do  you  want  to  know  ?  "   asked  Leigh. 

"Well,  no;  what  would  happen,  Senor  Mosquito?" 

"No,  se,"  said  the  man  from  the  coast. 

"  I  will  show  you,"  said  the  Englishman. 

He  held  up  his  pistol  and  fired  a  blank  cartridge  into  the 
air. 

Erupit  —  evasit.  In  a  minute  not  a  monkey  was  to  be 
seen.  The  parrots  rose  up  into  the  blue  air  without  further 
remarks.  There  was  a  dead  silence  everywhere.  The  only 
living  intelligence  left  in  the  tree-tops  were  two  trogons,  who 
mounted  lazily  to  high  wood,  and  trusted  to  fate  for  protection. 


THE    WONDERS    OF    THE    FOREST    BEGIN.  1 35 

The  male  was  a  beautiful  bird.  Leigh  desired  to  secure  it 
alive,  and  asked  Senor  Mosquito  if  it  could  be  done. 

Apula  shook  his  head. 

"  I  will  find  you  a  handsomer  one  higher  up,"  he  said. 

"  Higher  up  ?  " 

The  field  for  the  study  of  trogons,  higher  up,  was  indeed  a 
wide  one.  How  grand  the  mountains  loomed  in  the  sunny 
air !  The  forests  were  growing  more  lofty  and  sombre. 
Leigh,  like  the  Englishman,  wondered  as  to  what  surprise 
would  meet  them  next. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

AN    ARMY    OF    PIGS  BITTEN    BY    A    JIGGER. 

THE  question   had  not  long  been  asked  as  to  what  new 
surprise  awaited  our  travellers,  when  the  Mosquito  guide 
said,  "Hark!" 

The  Englishman  drew  his  rein,  and  the  mule  was  never 
slow  to  obey  that  order. 

There  was  heard  a  savage  sound  as  of  teeth. 

"  My  heyes!"  said  the  Englishman,  "what  is  that?" 

"The  wari,"  said  the  Mosquito. 

"And  what  are  the  wari?  " 

"Pigs,"  said  the  American,  "wild  pigs;  look  yonder." 

There  seemed  to  be  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  pigs  in  a 
company,  turning  hither  and  thither,  as  though  hung  on 
wires. 

"What  makes  them  go  in  companies  ?  "  asked  the  English- 
man. 

"To  protect  themselves  from  the  jaguar,"  said  the  Mos- 
quito. 

"There  are  no  jaguars  in  these  forests,  I  hope,"  said  the 
Englishman. 

"  Yes,  in  the  trees." 

"  In  the  trees  ?  What  is  to  prevent  them  from  jumping 
down  ?  " 

136 


AN    ARMY    OF    PIGS.  I37 

"  No  se,"  said  the  Mosquito,  shrugging  his  shoulders. 

The  Englishman  began  to  carefully  scan  the  tree-tops. 
Each  huge  macaw  that  wriggled  its  tail  in  a  far  vista  sug- 
gested the  jaguar. 

"The  jaguar  watches  for  the  pigs,"  said  the  Mosquito. 

"  He  falls  from  the  tree,  breaks  the  neck  of  one  of  the 
wari,  and  runs  up  the  tree  again,  leaving  the  pig  to  die. 
When  the  pigs  have  run  away  he  comes  down  the  tree  again 
and  eats  the  one  whose  neck  he  has  broken." 

"  He  never  falls  upon  a  mule?"  asked  the  Englishman. 

"No  se,"  responded  the  Mosquito,  leaving  much  to  our 
portly  friend's  imagination. 

"  He  might  fall  upon  a  boy,  if  he  were  to  stray  away- 
alone, "  continued  the  Mosquito. 

"  He  means  you,"  said  the  Englishman.  "I  would  advise 
you  to  walk  near  the  mules.  I  don't  care  to  see  one  of  those 
animals  outside  of  a  menagerie." 

"Everything  is  a  menagerie  here,"  said  the  Indian,  "and 
we  all  seem  to  be  in  the  condition   of  lion  tamers  in  a  cage." 

"  Hut  what  shall  we  do  when  it  comes  dark  ?  "  asked  the 
Englishman.  "Ants  that  devour  everything,  spiders,  and 
some  of  them  may  be  tarantulas  —  who  knows?  —  wild  pigs 
in  droves,  and  jaguars,  and  what  next?  Mozo,  say,  Senor 
Mosquito,  what  will  we  do  when  we  lie  down  to-night?" 

"  Qiicji  sabc"  said  Mozo,  the  Senor  Mosquito. 

"  I  couldn't  sleep  a  wink,"  said  the  Englishman.  "  I  would 
In-  afraid  that   I  would  wake  tip  dead." 

"  You  will  sleep,"  said  the  Italian.  "No  one  ever  rode  a 
mule  ten  hours  without  sleeping.  Every  bone  in  your  body 
will  cry  out  for  sleep  before  the  sun  goes  down,  and  you  will 


1 38  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

go  to  sleep,  even  though  a  jaguar  be  shaking  a  near  tree- 
top.  Build  up  a  fire,  and  it  will  be  the  jaguars  that  will  lie 
awake." 

They  made  them  camp  for  the  night. 

For  a  time  all  was  quiet  save  the  humming  of  insects  in 
the  sunset  trees. 

"  Mozo!  " 

It  was  the  Englishman  who  called  out  in  an  anxious  voice. 

The  guide  answered,  "What,  Serior?" 

"  Are  there  snakes  in  this  country  ?  " 

"  Yes,  Senor ;  there  are  coral  snakes  here,  so  I  have 
heard,  and  red  blood  snakes." 

It  was  early  evening,  and  in  the  tropics  the  world  wakes 
at  night.  Fireflies,  night  butterflies,  gleamed  in  the  trees ; 
the  air  seemed  alive. 

"There  are  deadly  centipedes  in  some  places,"  said  the 
guide.  "They  will  not  harm  you,  for  all  their  hundred  legs 
full  of  poison,  if  you  will  only  lie  still  and  let  them  run  over 
you." 

"  But  if  you  don't  lie  still,  they  bite,"  said  Little  Afraid. 

"What  happens  then  ?  "  asked  the  Englishman. 

"  You  put  tobacco  on  the  bite,  and  you  curl  up,  and  you 
never  say  no  more." 

The  Englishman  rose  up  in  his  hammock,  shaking  the  trees 
so  as  to  bring  down  a  shower  of  blooms  and  insects. 

"The  tarantulas  are  as  bad  as  the  centipedes,"  said  Little 
Afraid,  "and  the  scorpions  are  as  bad  as  any." 

"What  makes  all  these  things  have  stings  and  poisons  in 
them,  Mozo  ?  " 

"  No  sc." 


BITTEN    BY    A    JIGGER.  1 39 

"I  can't  sleep,"  said  the  Englishman;  "all  the  air  seems 
buzzing.     There's  a  buzzing  in  the  trees  above." 

"  Heavens  !  what  is  that  ?  " 

A  dismal  sound  echoed  from  the  well  palms. 

"That's  an  howl !  "  said  the  American. 

"An  owl?" 

"  No,  an  howl." 

"  What  should  make  an  animal  howl  like  that  ?  " 

There  was  a  silence.     The  cry  as  of  woe  was  repeated. 

"  Mozo,  what  is  that  animal  ?  " 

"  It  is  a  monkey,  Sehor." 

"What  makes  him  howl  ?  " 

"  No  sc,  Senor." 

The  night  brightened  into  a  dusky  glory.  The  valley 
seemed  a  ghost  land  of  palms. 

The  camp  had  become  silent.  Each  one  was  sleeping,  or 
on  his  way  to  sleep,  in  easy  hammocks.  The  alarm  dog  had 
ceased  to  bark,  when  suddenly  a  powerful  voice  startled  all. 

"  Mozo  !  " 

"  What,  Senor?" 

"  I  am  as  good  as  dead  now.  I  have  been  bitten.  I  can 
feci  it.      Mozo,  get  up  !  " 

The  guide  reluctantly  left  his  hammock. 

"Oh,  it  is  nothing  but  a  mosquito,"  he  said. 

"  Hut  I  haven't  been  bitten  there"  said  the  alarmed  man. 
"I  have  been  bitten  under  my  blanket.  Hurry  and  look! 
Time  is  precious  !  " 

The  Englishman  rolled  back  his  blanket  and  revealed  his 
leer 

"There  is  a  spot  there,"  said  the  guide. 


140  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"A  spot?  A  death  wound, — it  burns  like  fire.  Do  you 
suppose  it  was  a  tarantula  that  did  it,  or  a  scorpion  or  what?" 

"  Little  Afraid,  you  get  up  and  look  ;  you  have  lived  on 
the  coast." 

"  Drink  some  brandy,"  said  the  doctor. 

"  Put  some  tobacco  juice  on  the  wound,"  said  the  American. 

"How  does  it  look  ?"  asked  the  afflicted  man  of  Little 
Afraid. 

"  I  know  what  it  is,"  said  Little  Afraid. 

"  What  ?     Not  a  snake  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Little  Afraid,  turning  his  head  as  though  it 
was  hung  on  a  pivot. 

"  A  centipede  ?  " 

"  No,  Seiior,  not  that ;  there  is  only  one  spot,  and  that  is 
a  good  one." 

"  A  good  one  ?  " 

"  A  red  one  ;  it  is  growing." 

"  It  is  not  a  tarantula  that  has  bit  me  ? " 

"  No,  Seiior,  not  a  tarantula.  You  would  be  all  jerky-like, 
if  it  was  that." 

"  Then,  you  young  rascal,  why  don't  you  tell  me  what  it  is, 
and  not  keep  me  here  suspended  between  life  and  death? 
Mow  long  have  I  to  live  ?" 

"As  long  as  you  can,  Sehor." 

"  It  is  gone  in  to  make  its  nest  there." 

"  What  !   into  my  leg  ?  " 

"  Yes,  Senor,  it  lays  its  eggs  there  ;  then  it  swells." 

"  What  swells  ?  " 

"  The  spot  swells." 

"  What   made   the   spot?     You   young   rascal,  what   is  it? 


BITTEN    BY    A    JIGGER.  /4I 

Why  don't  you  tell  me  what  it  is  ?  I  can  feel  it  now.  The 
pain  is  running  up  my  leg.  Answer,  don't  keep  me  waiting, 
—  what  shall  I  do,  —  what  is  it  ?  If  you  know,  why  don't  you 
tell  ?  I  might  as  well  be  told  the  truth  first  as  last,  —  what 
is  it  ?     Oh,  oh  !  —  what  is  it  ?  " 

"It  is  a  jigger." 

The  guide  sunk  into  his  hammock  again.  The  American 
said,  — 

"Buenos  noche"  and  the  Italian  "Adios!" 

Little  Afraid  held  his  nose  to  keep  from  laughing,  and  the 
poor  traveller,  with  the  jigger  intent  on  nest  making,  groaned 
and  asked,  — 

"  Are  there  any  more  of  them  in  this  country  ?  " 

The  negro  boy  assured  him  that  the  land  was  full  of 
them,  and  they  sometimes  made  a  sore.  The  boy  talked 
sleepier  and  sleepier,  and  amid  a  humming  in  the  air,  like 
tropical  ocean  waves,  all  fell  asleep. 


CHAPTER    XV. 


THE    WOUNDED    MONKEY. 


THE  white-faced  monkey  has  traits  and  habits  that  are 
very  human.  It  has  a  strong  love  for  its  young,  and  it 
is  a  tender  sight  to  see  the  little  monkey  mother  nursing  her 
young  in  the  leafy  covers  of  the  trees. 

The  Italian  doctor,  after  a  noon  siesta  in  a  thick  wood 
where  the  party  had  rested  from  the  heat,  looked  up  into 
some  thick  limbs  and  saw  a  monkey  nursing  her  little  one. 
Yielding  to  curiosity  and  to  a  brutal  impulse,  which  some- 
times overcomes  the  humane  feelings  of  even  an  intelli- 
gent man,  he  lifted  his  pistol  and  fired  a  shot  at  the  little 
mother. 

The  poor  monkey  dropped  into  the  lower  boughs,  pitifully 
screaming,  but  clasping  her  little  one  to  her  breast. 

Her  blood  was  flowing,  and  when  she  saw  it  she  cried 
again,  and  more  closely  clasped  her  little  one. 

The  party  was  aroused  by  the  pistol  shot,  and  the  monkey 
looked  towards  them  pitifully  and  reproachfully. 

"What  did  you  do  that  for?"  asked  the  Englishman,  who 
had  a  heart  worthy  of  membership  of  a  humane  society. 

"  I  don't  know  ;  it  came  over  me  to  do  it,"  said  the  doctor. 
"  I'm  sorry;    it  did  me  no  good." 

The  monkey  dropped  to  the  ground,  still  holding  her  young. 

142 


THE  WOUNDED  MONKEY.  I43 

She  dragged  herself  away  at  a  little  distance,  faint,  bleeding, 
and  crying,  and  tried  to  run  up  some  lianas  near,  but  was  too 
weak.  She  now  seemed  looking  about  for  some  particular 
leaves  or  plants.  She  moved  herself  to  a  certain  bush, 
pulled  from  it  some  leaves,  and  put  them  into  the  bleeding 
wound. 

"  I  am  sorry  that  I  did  that  act,"  said  the  doctor.  "That 
monkey  has  the  instinct  of  a  physician.  See  how  she  is  try- 
ing to  heal  herself.  I  would  go  to  her  and  try  to  help  her  if 
it  would  not  scare  her."' 

She  lay  gasping  for  a  time,  with  her  little  one  still  trying 
to  nurse  at  her  breast. 

Suddenly  she  started  up  and  tried  again  to  raise  herself  on 
;i  liana,  but  she  had  not  the  strength. 

She  turned  her  eyes  towards  the  party,  as  if  asking 
for  pity  and  help.  She  trembled,  hugged  her  little  one 
closely,  then  dropped  to  the  earth,  uttered  a  little  wail  and 
died. 

"  I  shall  never  forget  those  eyes,"  said  the  Englishman. 
"They  were  as  near  human  as  any  beast's  could  be.  I  am 
an  old  traveller;  but  I  have  never  lost  my  heart  in  seeing  the 
world.  I  wouldn't  have  shot  that  monkey  for  a  fortune. 
What  is  it  in  human  nature  that  can  make  a  man  desire  to  take 
llif  life  of  anv  innocent  thing?  Doctor,  excuse  me  ;  it  was 
the  right  of  that  monkev  to  enjoy  the  sunshine,  the  air,  the 
trees.  It  was  the  right  of  that  little  baby  monkey,  which 
will  die,  to  have  its  mother.  I  have  travelled  in  India  ;  I  am 
no  Brahman  or  Buddhist  ;  I  have  little  regard  for  a  system  that 
degrades  men  and  enslaves  women  ;  but  I  am  an  Mast  Indian 
in  the  principle   that  all    harmless   life   is  sacred   to  God.      To 


144  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

kill  a  monkey  like  that  without  a  purpose  is  murder.  To 
put  out  life,  except  to  protect  life,  is  wrong.  Excuse  me, 
Doctor." 

"My  friend,"  said  the  doctor,  "you  are  right.  I  quite 
agree  with  you." 

"What  made  you  do  it?"  asked  the  questioner,  in  a  philo- 
sophical sense. 

"The  heast  that  remains  within  me.  Man  has  not  yet  be- 
come a  full  human  being.  The  tiger  is  still  in  the  cat.  The 
kitten  that  purrs  so  lovingly  in  your  lap  still  holds  the  in- 
stinct to  torture  a  mouse." 

"  Will  the  time  ever  come  when  that  instinct  will  be  elimi- 
nated from  the  human  heart  ?  " 

"  It  is  so  in  India  to-day,"  said  the  Englishman;  "but  by 
the  influence  of  superstition.  We  should  put  into  our  reli- 
gion the  best  that  is  in  all  religions,  and  Christianity  should  in 
part  follow  Indian  cult  in  the  principle  of  the  sacredness  of 
animal  life.  All  animals  that  are  harmless,  or  can  be  made 
so,  should  be  spared,  not  only  for  their  own  good,  but  for  our 
own  good.  Doctor,  you  would  have  been  a  better  man  had 
you  not  killed  that  poor  little  monkey." 

As  they  were  leaving  the  place,  there  was  a  shadow  in  the 
air.  Something  came  dashing  down  through  the  trees.  A 
huge  hawk  seized  upon  the  poor  baby  monkey  and  rose, 
obliquely,  and  drifted   away. 

"  The  hawk  is  our  brother,"  said  Mr.  Ladd,  the  American, 
who  hunted.  "  Most  people  need  more  kindergarten  educa- 
tion. Froebel  taught  the  brotherhood  of  little  children  and 
animals,  and  brought  the  birds  into  his  schoolroom.  There's 
a  better  day  coming  to  all  this  blind  world  !  " 


THE  WOUNDED  MONKEY.  145 

The  doctor  had  need  to  go  back  to  the  Golden  Age  of 
Guatemala  and  learn  some  lessons  of  the  vanished  Quetzal- 
coatls.  No  one,  then,  would  have  killed  a  monkey.  Why  do 
humane  ideas  advance,  and  then  retreat  again  ? 

L 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE    ROYAL    FAMILY    OF    TROGONS — LEIGH    FINDS    A    TROGON 
RESPLENDENS. 

LEIGH'S  purpose  to  find  a  quetzal,  the  bird  of  the  Mexi- 
/  can  deity,  and  the  national  emblem  of  the  state  of 
Guatemala,  seemed  now  likely  to  be  fulfilled.  There  were 
trogons  everywhere.  They  mingled  with  flocks  of  other 
birds,  possibly  for  protection. 

Leigh  made  daily  inquiries  about  them  and  their  habits, 
and  was  told  that  they  "  fed  upon  the  Wing."  This  could 
hardly  be  so,  except  in  the  case  of  insects,  for  he  saw  them 
often  lazily  gathering  fruit  on  the  trees. 

One  day  he  discovered  two  splendid  trogons  directly  over 
his  head,  in  a  woody  arcade.  They  were  green,  and  the 
male  had  a  reddish-brown  breast,  which  was  not  the  fiery 
crimson  that  he  had  expected  to  see.  But  the  lustres  of  the 
superb  bird,  the  so-called  "  feathered  snake,"  were  metallic, 
and  the  four  tail  feathers  had  the  same  hue.  The  female 
bird  was  an  ideal  of  loveliness,  though  her  plumage  was  not 
as  "  royal  "  as  that  of  the  male. 

"A  quetzal,"  said  Leigh  to  the  Mosquito. 

"  Ay,  ay,  a  quetzal  ;  a  trogon,  call  him  the  splendid  tro- 
gon,"  said  the  guide. 

Leigh's   heart    beat,      lie    studied    the    indolent    creature, 

146 


THE    ROYAL    FAMILY    OF    TROGOXS.  I47 

perched  amid  the  orchids.  There  was  the  golden  green,  of 
which  he  had  read,  the  primrose  and  amber  lustres,  but  not 
the  vivid  ruby  red.  Nor  was  the  tail  curved,  nor  two  feet 
long.  The  rounded  crest  of  filamentous  feathers  had  not 
the  imperial  appearance  that  he  had  seen  in  pictures.  He 
recalled  seeing  such  a  bird  in  the  collection  of  stuffed  trogons 
in  the  Boston  Museum  of  Natural  History,  and  that  it  was 
given  a  very  conspicuous  place  among  the  splendid  trogon 
family,  of  which  there  are  in  all  some  fifty  or  more  species. 

"  Was  that  the  Indian  bird  ?  "  asked  Leigh  of  the  Mos- 
quito, who  did  not  comprehend. 

"Ay,  ay,  the  royal  bird,"  said  the  guide.  "  Quetzalcoatl, 
the  god,  sent  him  forth.  It  was  death  to  kill  him  in  the  old 
times,  and  only  the  chiefs  were  allowed  to  wear  his  feathers. 
Quetzaltepec,  the  chieftain,  was  named  for  him." 

"But,"  said  Leigh,  "he  does  not  look  quite  as  splendid  as 
I  had  expected.  Are  you  quite  sure  that  that  is  a  royal 
trogon  .-1  " 

"They  call  it  the  splendid  trogon,"  said  the  Moscpiito,  in 
Spanish.  "  I  never  saw  a  more  splendid  bird  than  that,  did 
you  ?" 

"No,"  said  Leigh.  "The  fringed  cape  of  feathers  that 
partly  cover  his  wings  is  the  richest  plumage  that  I  ever 
saw." 

"  Some  call  him  the  peacock  trogon,"  said  the  guide. 

"('mild  you  capture  him?"  asked  Leigh  of  the  Mosquito, 
in  much  excitement. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  Mosquito.  "  What  will  you  pay  me 
if   I  will  ?" 

"A  pound  for  the  pair,"  said  Leigh. 


I48  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  You  shall  have  them,'*  said  the  Mosquito,  though  he  only 
in  part  comprehended  what  Leigh  had  said. 

"They  may  fly  away,"  said  Leigh. 

"  No,  no,"  said  the  Mosquito.  "  Trogons  don't  fly  about 
much  in  the  heat  of  the  day." 

"  I  must  have  them  both  alive,"  said  Leigh. 

"  You  shall  have  them  alive,"  said  the  Indian,  comprehend- 
ing the  condition. 

"  And  the  plumage  must  not  be  broken." 

"No,  no,"  said  the  Indian.  "The  feathers  of  the  trogon 
come  off  easily.  They  must  be  handled  with  care.  It  is  no 
easy  thing  to  stuff  those  birds,  the  feathers  fit  them  so  lightly. 
Splendid  feathers  grow  in  light  soil.  But,  mon  ami,  courage, 
you  shall  have  them  both  for  that  one  pound  that  you  prom- 
ised, and  not  a  feather  shall  be  broken." 

Leigh  looked  up  to  the  male  bird  with  the  fussy  crest. 
With  all  of  his  splendor,  he  had  not  the  attraction  of  his 
lovely  mate. 

"  It  would  do  me  good  to  hold  that  dove-like  wife  of  his  in 
my  hand,"  said  Leigh.      "  How  can  I  carry  them  away  ?  " 

"  Buy  an  openwork  basket  of  the  Indians  in  the  market- 
place of  some  village,  and  cover  the  to])  with  cloth  —  a  large 
basket."  said  the  guide. 

"  What  could  I  feed  them  with  ?  " 

"Oh,  fruit  —  any  kind  of  fruit,  all  kinds.  They  will  be 
contented  and  happy  as  long  as  they  are  together." 

How  was  the  Indian  to  capture  these  beautiful  birds 
among  the  high  orchids  ? 

"  You  will  have  to  go  away  from  here,"  said  the  Indian. 

"Why5"  asked  Leigh. 


THE    ROYAL    FAMILY    OF    TROGONS.  149 

"That  I  may  capture  the  birds." 

"  But  you  do  not  capture  birds  by  going  away  from  them  ?  " 

"Yes,  yes;  ay,  ay,     I  capture  some  birds  in  that  way." 

The  Indian  went  to  a  pack  mule.  He  took  from  it  a 
bottle  of  chicha,  of  the  strongest  kind,  in  which  were  some 
native  berries  like  cherries.  The  berries  looked  very  bright 
and  tempting.  They  were  a  luxury  that  the  arriero  carried 
with  him  for  the  needs  of  exhaustion  ;  they  had  a  reputation 
as  a  stimulant. 

He  took  some  of  the  red  berries  and  laid  them  down  in 
view  of  the  two  birds  under  the  trees,  and  walked  away. 

"Will  the  birds  come  down  to  eat  them  ?  "  asked  Leigh. 

"Ay,  ay." 

"  But  the  woods  are  full  of  berries." 

"But  not  of  that  kind,"  said  the  guide.  "The  trogon 
knows  that  berry  as  soon  as  he  sees  it,  and  he  will  seize  upon 
it  as  soon  as  he  is  left  to  do  so." 

"  But  he  will  not  eat  the  berries  when  he  tastes  the  alco- 
hol," said  Leigh  to  the  guide. 

"Wait  and  see,  amigo, —  wait  and  see.  Those  berries  are 
sweeter  than  sugar,  and  the  alcohol  gives  the  sweetness  a 
sting.  The  bird  loves  strong  berries,  as  well  as  sweet  ones. 
The  two  birds  will  make  a  least  of  the  berries  in  a  little  time. 
They  are  dropping  down  to  the  lower  limbs  of  the  trees  now. 
See  the  blossoms  fall.  That  male  bird  is  a  beauty.  He  is 
as  good  as  caught  now." 

The  I  ndian  was  right. 

The  male  bird  with  a  wave  of  his  beautiful  plumes  dropped 
upon  tin:  ground.  The  female  bird  followed  him.  Leigh 
watched  the  two  with  intense  excitement. 


I50  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

They  devoured  the  soaked  berries  greedily.  The  alcohol 
did  not  seem  to  be  distasteful  to  them. 

After  eating  the  berries,  they  did  not  rise.  They  seemed 
dazed  and  stood  there.  Then  the  male  bird  spread  out  its 
wings  helplessly,  and  sunk  upon  the  ground,  and  the  female 
bird  gave  a  little  Mutter  and  fell  down  beside  him. 

Leigh  started  to  go  to  him. 

"  Wait  a  little,"  said  the  Indian.  "  Don't  go  too  soon,  lest 
they  flutter  and  break  their  plumage.  Let  me  go  and  find  a 
basket.  You  can  buy  a  larger  basket  when  you  come  to  a 
village." 

Leigh  waited.  The  birds  fluttered  a  little  and  then  lay 
still. 

The  Indian  went  away  and  came  back  bringing  a  basket 
with  a  cover,  and  handed  it  to  Leigh. 

"There  are  the  birds,"  he  said,  pointing. 

Leigh  went  up  to  them  and  took  up  the  supposed  royal 
birds,  as  they  lav  on  the  sandy  turf  dead  drunk.  He  put 
them  into  his  basket. 

"  They  will  open  their  eyes  when  they  awake,"  said  Leigh, 
"and  find  that  their  world  has  grown  less." 

"That  is  the  way  with  folks  in  that  condition," .  said  the 
guide. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  good  Englishman,  who  had  come 
to  view  the  curious  scene,  and  who  had  heard  the  last 
remark. 

"  The  world  grows  less  to  all  creatures  who  do  net  learn 
to  curb  their  appetites  and  passions.  Poor  birds,  I  pity  ye 
when  ye  \v;ike  up.  I've  pitied  creatures  like  you  before. 
What  are  vou  Lfoimr  to  do  with  them,  Leitrh  ?" 


THE    ROYAL    FAMILY    OF    TROGONS.  1 5  I 

"  Take  them  back  to  the  States.  We  have  a  bird-house  at 
home." 

"You  will  find  that  no  easy  matter,  my  boy." 

"They  will  be  worth  the  care,"  said  Leigh. 

"There  are  few  collections  of  living  birds  that  have  the 
royal  bird  of  the  Aztecs,  the  bird  of  the  gods,  in  their  num- 
ber." 

"  Do  you  think  that  those  are  the  real  birds  of  the  tem- 
ples ?  " 

"Yes,"  said  Leigh.      "  Trogons  resplendens." 

"  All  trogons  resplendens  are  not  royal  quetzals,"  said  the 
Englishman. 

"  But  look  at  the  crown  on  this  one's  head,  and  the  fringed 
feathers  on  the  wings,  and  the  red  breast,"  said  Leigh. 

"  But  the  breast  is  not  carmine,"  said  the  Englishman.  "  I 
thought  that  the  tail  of  the  quetzal  was  much  longer,  and 
that  it  was  barred  and  curved,  and  of  variegated  lustres. 
This  male  bird  has  too  many  plumes  in  his  tail.  Are  you 
quite  sure  that  this  is  the  bird  that  you  have  been  seek- 
ing?" 

"  So  the  Indian  says,  and  he  should  know." 

Leigh  stood  in  the  shadow  of  the  glimmering  trees,  and 
studied  the  lustres  of  the  jewel-like  plumage  of  the  helpless 
bird.  All  the  feathers  on  the  body  were  soft  as  silk,  and 
they  seemed  to  have  been  dipped  in  jewels.  How  delighted 
Captain  Erobisher  would  he  when  he  saw  this  living  treasure : 
this  gem  ol  the  woods,  wearing  the  lustres  oi  the  sun  ! 

In  a  tew  hours  Leigh  looked  info  the  basket  to  find  that 
the  birds  had  revived.  They  seemed  very  much  surprised, 
and   to   be  wondering  at   what   had   happened.      Their  beaks 


15-2  I.O.ST    IN    NICAKAC.UA. 

were  of  a  bright  yellow.  Leigh  put  some  luscious  fruit  into 
the  basket,  and  left  it  there. 

He  dreamed  that  he  secured  a  treasure  of  the  temples  of 
the  gods,  whose  ruins  he  would  see  in  Lake  Nicaragua  and 
in  Guatemala. 

They  journeyed  slowly  into  the  mountains,  rising  as  it  were 
on  stone  steps  out  of  green  forests  into  the  clear  regions  of 
the  sky.  But,  alas,  for  the  royal  trogons !  One  morning 
Leigh  arose  from  his  hammock,  to  hear  hundreds  of  tro- 
gons calling,  but  his  royal  birds  were  both  dead.  He  care- 
fully removed  their  feathers. 

He  was  bitterly  disappointed.  Apula  saw  it,  and  touched 
him  on  the  shoulder,  and  said:  — 

"  '1  nose  were  no  true  birds.  I  know  —  I  will  find  you  the 
true  bird  some  day  —  some  day.  Apula  will  not  forget. 
My  heart  is  yours." 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

THE    JAGUAR    HUNT. 

WITH  the  party  went  a  curious  dog,  which  was  called 
an  "alarm  dog,"  because  he  always  barked  when  he 
saw  anything  that  other  eyes  did  not  see.  In  the  still  nights 
he  was  constantly  giving  an  alarm,  which  made  our  nervous 
English  traveller  very  restless.  After  seeing  the  army  of  the 
ants,  the  pigs,  and  being  told  of  the  jaguar's  habits,  under 
the  name  of  the  cougar,  his  nervous  fears  grew,  and  he  had 
suspicions  of  every  bush. 

One  night,  when  they  were  encamped,  he  heard  what 
sounded  like  a  child  crying  in  a  pavilion-like  cluster  of  trees. 
He  started  up  and  roused  Leigh. 

"  What's  that,  boy  ?  "   he  asked  in  a  tremor. 

"  It  is  a  cry  of  distress,"  said  Leigh. 

"  Mozo,"  said  the  Englishman,  "  Mozo,  hello,  wake  up. 
There's  some  one  in  distress,  crying  in  the  wood  yonder.  I 
have  heard  it  a  dozen  times." 

"That's  nothing,"  said  the  guide.  "We  must  have  sleep; 
we  have  a  hard  journey  before  us  for  the  morrow."  He 
turned  in  his  hammock,  and  was  lost  to  all  cries  of  distress. 

"  I  can't  sleep  with  that  sound  in  my  ears,"  said  the  good- 
hearted  Englishman. 

The  Italian  doctor  was  now  awake. 

'53 


154  LOST    IN"    NICARAGUA. 

"Doctor,"  said  the  Englishman,  "you  arc  younger  than  I. 
Go  out  to  the  trees  yonder  and  look  around.  There's  a  child 
lost  there." 

The  Italian  rolled  out  of  his  hammock,  and,  taking  his  gun, 
went  out  into  the  moonlit  air.  The  night  was  still  now  ;  the 
trees  were  glistening  with  dew  and  emitted  a  resinous  odor. 
The  near  mountains  looked  like  shadows  in  the  air. 

It  came  again  —  that  pitiful  cry.  The  place  where  they 
were  encamped  was  called  a  quebrada. 

The  doctor  with  a  light  tread  stole  up  the  side  of  the 
quebrada  towards  the  tall,  tent-like  trees,  whence  the  sound 
had  come.  He  entered  the  cluster  and  suddenly  emerged, 
and  hurried  back  to  the  glen  of  the  hammocks. 

"What  have  you  seen  ?  "  asked  the  Englishman. 

"  I  hab  seen  de  debil,"  said  the  Italian,  forgetting  his  Eng- 
lish accent. 

The  Englishman  started  up. 

"  You  have? — you  mean  something  that  has  an  evil  spirit. 
But  no  evil  thing  cries  like  that." 

"  There  was  something  in  the  branches  of  the  trees, 
stretched  out  long.      It  has  eyes  like  fire." 

Our  good  friend's,  the  Englishman's,  eyes  began  to  glow. 

"  What  a  horrible  place  this  is!  Mozo,  arriero,  Mosquito," 
he  called.  "  Wake  up,  the  evil  one  has  been  seen  in  the  trees, 
crying  like  a  child  !     Wake  up  !  " 

The  guide  now  sat  up. 

"  What  do  you  think  it  is  ?  " 

"  A  puma,"  said  the  guide.  The  puma  is  the  South 
American  lion. 

"  What  is  that?"  asked  the  Englishman. 


THE    JAGUAR    HUNT.  I  55 

"  A  cougar,"  said  the  guide. 

"  A  painter  "  (panther),  answered  the  American.  "  It  is 
nothing  but  a  cat." 

"  What  is  it  doing  ?  "  asked  the  Englishman. 

"Watching,"  said  the  Italian. 

"  But  I  do  not  want  to  be  watched  by  a  cat  like  that !  Is 
the  puma,  cougar,  and  painter  all  one  cat?" 

"One  name  for  the  same  cat,"  said  the  American. 

"It  must  be  an  awful  cat  to  have  so  many  names;  I've 
seen  pictures  of  the  animal  in  natural  history  books." 

"  It  is  a  jaguar,"  said  the  doctor,  "  a  Fell's  onca.  The  puma 
is  a  wrong  name  for  him  —  a  Fclis  onca." 

"  That  sounds  more  awful  than  all  the  rest.  That  is  the 
animal  that  leaps  upon  a  wild  pig  and  breaks  his  back." 

"  lie  leaps  upon  an  animal  from  the  trees,  and  breaks  his 
neck  by  twisting  his  head  around,"  said  the  American. 

"  I  wouldn't  want  to  die  like  that.  Mozo,  go  out  and  take 
a  shot  at  him." 

"  Wait  until  morning,"  said  the  guide. 

"Will  he  wait  too  ?"   asked  the  Englishman. 

"  Yes,  yes." 

"  Then  I  couldn't  sleep  a  wink  more,"  said  the  English- 
man.     "  Sometimes  I  wish  that  I  hadn't  come." 

"lie  has  ;i  beautiful  skin,"  said  the  guide,  "yellow, 
covered  with  rosettes." 

"With  black  rings  with  spots  in  the  middle  of  them,"  said 
the  doctor.      "The  animal  has  more  spots  than  names." 

"  I  would  like  to  have  his  skin  to  send  home  tor  a  Christ- 
mas present  to  my  daughter,"  said  the  Englishman. 

"  I  would  write  to   her  that    I  — no,  that    my  part)-  shot  it, 


156  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

and  she  would  hang  it  up  in  the  hall,  and  I  could  always 
look  upon  it  with  pride,  and  tell  my  friends  how  we  hunted 
it,  and  made  an  adventure  of  it.  Mozo,  I  have  heard  of  a 
jaguar  hunt ;  I  will  give  you  two  pounds  for  that  animal's 
hide" 

The  arriero  was  awake  now,  his  eyes,  too,  shone.  He 
rolled  from  his  hammock,  lit  a  torch,  and  examined  his  gun. 

"Follow  me,"  he  said;   "all  go." 

lie  went  towards  the  high  thicket. 

The  morning  was  breaking.  The  woods  resounded  with 
the  screams  of  the  parrots  and  the  songs  of  birds.  There 
was  a  gleam  on  the  mountain  tops,  and  a  fresh  odor,  as  of 
dewy  blooms,  everywhere. 

The  guide  began  to  bend  low  as  he  came  to  the  thickets. 
The  rest  of  the  party  followed  his  example,  hardly  knowing 
why  they  did  so,  for  they  saw  nothing.  The  Englishman 
followed  last. 

"  Is  the  jaguar  a  very  large  animal  ?  "  he  asked  of  the 
American. 

"Almost  as  big  as  a  tiger,"  said  the  American.  "He 
could  carry  you  off  in  his  mouth,  so  I  have  read  —  some  of 
them  arc  so  large  that  they  can  carry  off  a  sheep." 

"  I  wouldn't  want  to  fall  in  with  one  alone,"  said  the  Eng- 
lishman. "  In  the  forest  the  animal  has  the  right  of  way, 
and  I  would  give  it  to  him.      What  does  he  live  on  ?  " 

"  Monkeys,"  said  the  American. 

"You  don't  say  that,"  said  the  Englishman.  "Monkeys, 
monkeys.  Gramercy,  I  would  rather  have  his  skin  than 
him." 

The  guide  was  now  in  the  wood,  tinder  the  tall  trees.     The 


THE    JAGUAR    HUNT.  1  57 

crack  of  his  rifle  shook  the  air,  and  caused  a  cloud  of  parrots' 
wings  to  rise. 

Something  fell.  The  Englishman  turned,  and  leaped 
back  towards  the  quebrada.      "  I'm  so  slow,"   he  said. 

There  was  a  battle  in  the  bushes,  and  the  American 
stepped  back. 

A  beautiful  animal  with  a  terrible  face  rushed  out  of  the 
thicket,  fie  was  leaping  as  though  wounded,  but  he  came 
in  the  direction  of  the  quebrada. 

The  Englishman  beheld  him,  and  one  look  at  his  open 
mouth  and  maddened  eyes  caused  him  to  leap  about  in  the 
greatest  terror. 

"  Shoot !  "  cried  the  guide  to  the  Englishman. 

"  Shoot  him  yourself,"  cried  the  Englishman,  "for  heaven's 
sake,  shoot,  shoot  !  " 

Just  then  the  animal  rushed  into  the  space  between  the 
guide  and  our  English  friend.     The  guide  raised  his  gun. 

"Molt!   holt!"  cried  the   Englishman,  "don't  shoot  me  !  " 

The  Englishman  turned  round  and  round,  as  the  animal 
rushed  by  him  almost  on  to  the  barrel  of  his  gun. 

What  a  beautiful  creature  he  was  with  his  yellow  skin  and 
blaek  rosettes. 

He  leaped  down  the  quebrada,  then  up  the  other  side, 
leaving  a  trail  of  blood  behind.  The  animal  was  wounded. 
The  guide  rushed  after  him. 

''Follow!"  he  cried.  All  saw  the  animal's  hopeless  ease, 
and  hurried  on  after  the  guide. 

The  jaguar,  for  so  it  was,  and  not  a  puma,  ran  with  great 
force,  but  limping,  into  an  adjoining  wood,  when  a  marvellous 
thing  happened.      In    the    middle   ot    the   wood   was  a  clear 


I  58  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

lake,  and  on  its  margin  was  a  tapir  drinking.  The  animal 
looked  like  a  great  hog  or  a  little  elephant.  She  had  a  little 
one  with  her,  which  caused  her  to  pause  when  she  heard  the 
hunters  coming. 

The  jaguar  ran  through  some  thick  bushes  on  the  bank  of 
the  stream,  then  into  some  reedy  grass,  near  the  little  tapir. 
He  sunk  down  for  a  moment,  then  gave  a  leap,  and  fell  upon 
the  back  of  the  tapir,  which  now  tried  to  run  away. 

But  the  hunters  were  on  one  side  and  the  lake  or  pond 
on  the  other,  and  the  frightened  animal  rushed  into  the 
pond  with  the  jaguar  on  her  back.  She  was  soon  in  deep 
water. 

"  Fire  !  "  said  the  guide  to  the  Italian. 

The  Italian  took  aim  at  the  jaguar  and  discharged  his 
ride. 

The  animal  sprang  forward  and  rolled  over  into  the  water. 

The  guide  levelled  his  gun  at  the  tapir. 

"  Spare  her  for  the  sake  of  her  young,"  said  the  American. 

"Well,  we  have  killed  the  jaguar,"  said  the  Englishman. 
"The  next  thing  will  be  to  get  him  out  of  the  pond." 

This  was  not  difficult.  The  beast  floated  at  first,  and  then 
was  easily  dragged  ashore. 

It  had  been  wounded  in  the  foreleg,  under  the  breast. 
It  had  seemed  to  have  felt  its  helplessness,  and  to  have 
sought  to  use  the  tapir's  legs  for  its  own. 

The  skin  was  very  beautiful.  The  Englishman  paid  the 
promised  two  pounds  to  the  guide,  rolled  up  the  skin  to  send 
to  England,  as  a  trophy  of  the  achievements  of  the  party 
with  which  he  hunted.  We  hardly  think  that  he  would  have 
claimed  more  than   his  share  in  the   hunt,   for,   although  he 


THE    JAGUAR    HUNT.  I  5Q 

was  a  very  careful  man,  he  had  deep  respect  for  honor  and 
truth,  and  was  also  so  kind-hearted  as  to  say:  — 

"  It  seems  a  pity  to  kill  an  animal  that  could  reason  like 
that.  But,"  he  added,  "  I  would  not  have  liked  to  find 
my  legs  in  that  cat's  mouth,  that  painter,  puma,  cougar, 
jaguar  cat  —  that  is  too  much  of  a  cat." 

Indeed  it  was.  All  these  names  may  be  applied  to  tigers 
of  the  same  family,  but  they  are  not  all  of  the  same  kind, 
certainly  not  the  puma. 

They  were  now  far  on  their  way  to  the  lake. 

They  occasionally  met  in  the  forest  a  Rio  Frio  Indian. 
Some  of  these  were  very  friendly,  some  very  reserved  and 
shy. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

THE    LOST    INDIAN    BABIES    OF    RIO    FRIO  —  ZAPATERA. 

THE  bad  Indians  of  the  Rio  Frio!"  Such  is  not  an 
uncommon  appellation  of  a  tribe  of  Indians  who 
shun  the  face  of  white  men,  and  have  become  the  deadly 
enemy  of  the  immigrating  Europeans. 

But  the  Rio  Frio  Indians  did  not  always  bear  the  bad 
reputation  among  the  white  people  that  they  now  have. 
They  were  a  simple  tribe,  living  happily  among  the  india- 
rubber  groves,  hunting  peaceably,  and  drifting  on  their  dug- 
out canoes  or  burnt-out  canoes  of  the  trunks  of  the  great 
mahogany  or  other  giant  trees.  In  their  huts,  made  proba- 
bly of  cane  and  roofed  with  grasses  or  palms,  they  raised 
their  families  of  children  in  primitive  simplicity,  were  minis- 
tered to  by  their  wives,  and  were  proud  of  the  beauty  of 
their  babies. 

For  these  babies  were  very  pretty,  and  the  delight  of  the 
huts  under  the  river  palms. 

The  india-rubber  trade  was  carried  into  this  quiet  region, 
and  some  of  the  traders  were  attracted  to  the  simple  homes 
by  the  beauty  of  the  little  children,  especially  of  the  babies, 
with  their  olive  faces,  black  luminous  eyes,  and  cunning 
features. 

The  followers  of  the  traders    began  occasionally  to  steal 

160 


THE    LOST    INDIAN     BABIES.  l6l 

one  or  more  of  these  doll-like  babies,  and  carry  them  to  the 
cities  on  the  lakes  and  the  river  San  Juan,  and  give  them 
away. 

But  it  was  soon  found  that  these  charming  little  ones  of 
the  rubber  groves,  like  especially  attractive  monkeys  and 
parrots,  had  a  market  value.  A  Rio  Frio  baby  was  a 
delightful  pet  for  a  rich  family  to  hold,  and  when  it  grew 
up,  and  was  no  longer  desirable  on  account  of  its  beauty, 
the  captive  became  a  useful  servant.  For  this  cause  the 
stealing  of  Indian  babies  became  common. 

But  how  did  the  Indian  families  regard  the  loss  of  these 
beautiful  children,  the  babies  that  were  their  household 
treasures  ? 

The  people  who  captured  these  bright-eyed  beauties  spoke 
of  them  as  though  they  had  the  same  kind  of  right  to  them 
as  they  would  have  had  to  young  monkeys.  To  them  the 
robbery  was  nothing  more  than  that  of  a  bird's  nest.  The 
stolen  treasure  was  only  "  an  Indian  baby."  "  Come  here  and 
let  me  show  you  what  I  have  bought  for  the  patio,"  such  a 
housewife  would  say;  "it  is  an  Indian  baby  from  the  Rio 
Frio;  isn't  he  a  little  beauty?"  The  visitor  would  be  taken 
to  it  amid  the  monkeys,  parrots,  and  song-birds,  to  witness  its 
cunning  ways  as  it  lay  in  the  lap  of  some  negro  nurse. 

But  the  conduct  of  these  Indians  towards  the  explorers 
suddenly  changed.  The  india-rubber  traders  began  to  be 
exposed  to  poisonous  arrows  shot  by  invisible  toes  from  be- 
hind the  great  trunks  of  the  trees  and  webs  of  lianas.  The 
adventurer  who  wandered  off  alone  in  the  Rio  Frio  was 
likely  to   come   to   a   tragic   end. 

Suddenly  the  Rio  Frio  natives  began  to  be  called  "  bad  " 


1 62  LOST    IN'    NICARAGUA. 

Indians  in  t lie  coast  cities.  It  became  necessary  for  the 
traders  to  go  well  armed,  and  to  be  very  watchful  on  entering 
the  great  shadows  of  the  rubber  groves  on  the  river. 

The  traders  at  last  seized  upon  one  of  the  chief  Indians 
by  stealth,  and  tried  to  persuade  him  to  make  a  treaty  with 
them.     The  leader's  name  we  will  call  Paco. 

"  When  you  shall  restore  to  us  the  children  you  have 
stolen,  we  will  consider  your  proposal;  but  never  until 
then,"  said   Paco. 

"  Your  day  of  judgment  will  one  day  fall,"  said  Paco. 
"  It  will  happen  to  you  as  to  all  who  wrong  the  hearts  of 
others.  Mark  you,  mark  you  !  listen  to  me  if  you  have  ears. 
The  children  that  you  have  stolen  from  our  huts  will  one 
day  become  men.  Mark  you,  mark  you !  and  they  have 
mothers.  The  mothers  wander,  and  they  never  forget.  No, 
no!  The  Indian  mother  may  have  many  little  ones,  but  she 
never  forgets  one  of  them.  The  mothers  whose  bosoms  you 
have  robbed,  they  wander,  they  remember ;  and  the  lost 
children  will  grow!" 

The  trader  took  alarm.  He  had  one  of  the  growing 
babies  in  his  own  family,  and  he  had  been  accustomed  to 
treat  the  stealing  of  the  beautiful  Indian  babies  as  he  would 
have  done  the  capture  of  monkeys. 

The  Indian  mother  never  forgets  her  babe. 

She  wanders,  as  the  chief  had  said,  and  the  stolen  babe 
would  grow  to  be  a  man. 

The  trader  turned  over  these  things  in  his  mind,  and 
he  suddenly  recalled  another  fact,  that  these  Indians  could 
practise  deadly  enchantments,  as  the  arts  of  destruction  were 
called,  and  could  use  poisons  in  more  ways  than  on  arrows. 


THE    LOST    INDIAN     BABIES.  1 63 

He  surveyed  the  cacique.  He  knew  that  he  represented 
the  cause  of  human  right.  Every  family  has  the  right  to  its 
children,  no  matter  how  barbarous  it  may  be.  He  would  try 
to  put  an  end  to  baby  stealing  by  creating  the  common  sen- 
timent of  justice  against  such  things. 

But  he  forgot  his  good  resolution  in  the  hurry  of  trade  and 
traffic,  and  the  incident  of  his  meeting  Paco  almost  passed 
out  of  his  mind. 

One  day  on  returning  to  his  home,  or  bungalow,  he  noticed 
a  tall,  sharp-eyed  Indian  woman  among  his  servants.  There 
was  an  air  of  mystery  about  her  that  caused  him  to  say  to 
his  wife  :  — 

"Where  did  you  find  that  woman  ?     She  is  an  Indian." 

"  She  came  here  to  be  hired.  I  wanted  help  and  engaged 
her." 

"  Does  she  belong  to  the  same  tribe  as  little  Paco  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know." 

"Is  she  friendly  to  little  Paco  ?  " 

"  I  have  never  seen  them  speaking  together,  but  I  have 
noticed  that  her  eyes  sometimes  rest  upon  him,  and  that  his 
are  continually  following  her." 

"  Little  Paco  is  a  boy  now,  wife." 

"  Yes,  I  know,  he  is  no  longer  a  curiosity;  you  must  em- 
ploy him  now.  Find  him  a  place  among  the  hands  in  the 
canefields." 

The  explorer's  suspicions  were  aroused  that  this  tall  Indian 
woman  had  sought  work  in  his  home  from  some  other  reason 
than  service.  She  did  nut  talk  Spanish  well,  and  in  answer 
to  his  questions  she  uttered  only  vague  words,  and  seemed 
disposed  to  turn  away  from  him. 


164  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

He  had  a  beautiful  babe,  and  it  began  to  engage  the  atten- 
tion of  little  Paco,  the  stolen  baby,  now  a  boy.  A  deep  affec- 
tion sprang  up  between  the  two.  Paco  loved  to  play  with 
the  child  whenever  the  black  nurse  took  it  into  the  patio. 

The  hired  Indian  woman  was  never  seen  to  speak  to  the 
babe  or  to  little  Paco,  but  her  eyes  were  turned  towards  the 
happy  group,  when  the  babe  was  brought  into  the  patio  and 
the  people  gathered  around  it. 

The  trader  went  and  came.  His  suspicions  disappeared. 
His  household  seemed  to  be  perfect  in  happiness  and  har- 
mony. 

One  day,  as  he  came  home,  he  was  met  by  his  wife  at  the 
gate,  who  rushed  out  of  the  house,  weeping  and  trembling 
and  throwing  up  her  hands,  — 

"The  babe!  the  babe!"  she  cried.  "It  is  gone,  —  they 
are  hunting  for  it,  —  it  is  gone  !  I  woke  in  the  morning  and 
felt  for  it,  but  the  bed  was  empty  !  " 

"Gone?"  exclaimed  the  trader.  "Where  is  the  Indian 
woman  ?  " 

"  She  is  gone  to  find  little  Paco." 

"  Paco  ?  where  is  the  boy  ?  " 

"  He  went  away  to  look  for  the  baby,  as  soon  as  I  told  him 
that  it  was  gone." 

The  babe  had  not  walked  away.  The  nurse  had  not  car- 
ried it  away.      It  had  been  stolen. 

Put  Paco  had  gone  in  search  of  the  thief,  and  the  Indian 
woman  had  Hod  to  find  him. 

"Wife,"  said  the  explorer,  wildly,  "that  Indian  woman 
was  the  mother  of  Paco,  and  Paco  stole  the  babe,  and  hid 
it    in    the   cacti,  and  has   fled   with   it   away.      The   babe    is 


THE    LOST    INDIAN    BABIES.  165 

being  carried  away  to  the  Rio  Frio  Indians  amid  the  rubber 
trees." 

The  explorer  rushed  madly  about,  hither  and  thither, 
making  inquiries  of  every  one  he  met  in  regard  to  little  Paco 
and  the  Indian  woman.  But  the  going  away  of  the  two  had 
been  very  silent  and  mysterious. 

The  explorer  summoned  some  trusty  men,  and  with  them 
took  a  canoe,  and  paddled  towards  the  principal  settlement 
of  the  Rio  Frio  Indians. 

He  made  the  men  paddle  swiftly,  and  to  pay  little  heed 
to  the  dangers  of  the  stream.  He  never  felt  the  value  of 
the  little  life  of  a  babe  before. 

"  On,  on,"  he  cried,  "  anything  for  the  child!  " 

As  he  drew  near  the  place  of  the  settlement,  he  stood  up 
in  the  boat  and  loaded  his  rifle,  with  a  terrible  look  in  his 
face. 

Something  white  cleaved  the  air  from  a  mangrove  near. 

He  shook  for  a  moment,  dropped  his  rifle,  and  sank  clown 
into  the  boat,  and  losing  his  balance  fell  into  the  water.  He 
did  not  try  to  save  himself.  They  drew  him  up  out  of  the 
water,  but  he  was  dead. 

They  went  to  the  settlements,  but  the  huts  were  deserted. 
Neither  Paco,  little  Paco,  the  Indian  mother,  if  so  she  was, 
or  the  white  babe  were  ever  heard  of  by  the  rubber  traders 
or  seen  by  any  of  the  white  explorers  again. 

There  has  been  an  American  Mission  among  these  Indians 
for  several  years,  under  the  patronage  of  the  Brothers  Arthur, 
builders,  of  Philadelphia. 


l66  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  party  arrived  at  the  ancient  Spanish  city  of  Granada, 
on  Lake  Nicaragua.  Leigh  had  expected  to  find  his  uncle 
and  brother  here,  but  they  had  not  yet  arrived.  Leigh  re- 
mained at  Granada  for  a  few  days,  keeping  Apula  with  him. 

Granada  seemed  to  be  the  old  world.  There  was  an 
ancient  air,  a  faded  grandeur  everywhere.  The  scenery  from 
the  high  points  of  the  city  is  enchanting,  the  palm  lands, 
the  lake,  and  the  lake  volcanoes.  Some  twenty  thousand 
people  live  here,  and  most  of  them  seem  to  have  little  to 
do.      It  was  once  a  famous  port  city. 

Between  Granada  and  Rivas  (old  Nicaragua)  is  a  dead 
island,  or  an  island  of  the  dead,  named  Zapatera,  the  Shoe- 
maker. It  is  volcanic  and  rises  nearly  two  thousand  feet 
high.  Here  lie  the  remains  of  a  once  wonderful  city,  a 
place  of  worship,  like  Copan  in  Guatemala,  or  Palenque  in 
Mexico. 

Apula  secured  a  bongo,  or  long  boat,  and  took  Leigh  to 
this  island. 

A  bongo  is  some  fifty  feet  long  with  masts,  and  is  made 
from  the  trunk  of  a  single  tree. 

The  sail  on  the  lakes  was  most  beautiful,  the  volcanic 
islands  rising  high  in  the  serene  air,  like  pyramids  out  of 
the  waters. 

The  ruins  are  found  in  the  midst  of  tropical  forest.  The 
monuments  of  deified  kings  and  heroes  are  rude  and  un- 
sightly, and  without  the  refined  lines  of  those  at  Copan, 
Guatemala,  or  at  Palenque,  Mexico.  Had  these  images 
not  been  made  of  solid  stone,  this  place  of  temples  and 
teocalli  would  probably  have  vanished  from  the  memory  of 
man. 


ZAPATERA.  167 

One  of  the  proposed  routes  for  the  Nicaraguan  Canal 
lies  on  a  point  near  Rivas  to  the  Pacific.  Another  takes  in 
both  the  lakes  of  Nicaragua  and  Managua.  Should  the 
latter  be  used,  what  sights  of  prehistoric  associations  may 
the  future  traveller  see  as  he  passes  on  shipboard  through 
these  lakes,  upon  whose  shores  lie  the  limbs  of  vanished 
gods  and  races !  The  canal  would  cause  Lake  Nicaragua 
to  become  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  world.  There  Toltecs, 
Aztecs,  Indian  tribes,  and  we  may  almost  say  a  Spanish 
race  have  arisen,  raised  their  temples  and  churches,  and 
sunk  into  shade.  Education  comes  next,  and  it  must  be 
the  education  of  the  spiritual  principles  that  eternally 
endure ;  though  races  come  and  go,  and  temples  rise  and 
fall,  the  kingdom  of  the  true  God  lies  in  the  soul. 

After  Leigh  returned  to  Granada,  the  whole  party  who 
had  made  the  adventurous  journey  across  Costa  Rica  were 
invited  by  the  careful  Englishman,  Mr.  Hobbs,  to  visit  a 
cocoa,  or  cacao,  plantation,  to  which  he  had  been  taken  by  a 
jolly  old  English  friend,  who  loved  to  entertain. 

The  party  were  glad  to  visit  the  place,  for  it  was  famous. 
The  Englishman's  name  was  Holiday  Holme.  He  was  a 
merry  story-teller,  as  well  as  a  hospitable  entertainer. 

His  estate  on  the  lake,  or  rather  overlooking  it,  consisted 
of  ten  thousand  acres.  The  house  was  adobe  and  tiles, 
full  of  airy  rooms  that  opened  into  a  court,  which  was  well 
supplied  with  little  animals,  birds,  and  flowers,  after  the  man- 
ner of  the  country.  Near  the  rambling  house  was  an  im- 
mense cattle  pen.  We  would  describe  the  growing  trade  in 
cacao  here,  but  have  done  so  in  "Over  the  Andes." 

It  gave  Holiday  Holme  more   pleasure  to  entertain   twenty 


l68  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

than  ten.  His  hacienda  was  a  kingdom,  and  his  wandering- 
like adobe  house  was  ample  enough  for  a  charitable  institu- 
tion.    There  was  almost  a  village  of  peon  cabins  around  it. 

To  the  astonishment  of  Leigh  "  Uncle  Holiday,"  as  he 
was  called,  had  an  American  wife.  One  of  his  merry  stories 
was  how  he  met  this  lady,  who  was  very  kind  and  accom- 
plished, and  who  had  won  his  heart  through  her  voice. 

"  My  wife  won  me  through  her  heart,  which  she  put  into 
song,"  said  the  major  domo.  "  How  would  you  like  to  hear 
her  sing  some  of  her  songs  ?  She  composes  music.  She 
sets  to  music  the  songs  of  the  country." 

"  How  ?  "  There  was  nothing  that  could  be  more  agree- 
able than  to  hear  the  American  dona  sing.  The  lady  com- 
plied with  the  request  of  all  in  a  very  hospitable  spirit. 

She  had  a  beautiful  voice  ;  there  were  heart  tones  in  it. 
One  of  the  songs,  Salaverry's  "  Song  of  Peace,"  was  espe- 
cially beautiful;  it  was  a  Peruvian  poem,  which  she  had 
set  to   music. 

salaverry's  "song  of   peace." 

4i  Ye  warriors  of  freedom,  ye  champions  of  right, 

Sheathe  your  swords  to  sweet  harmony's  strains  ; 
No  bayonet  should  gleam,  and  no  soldier  should  fight, 
Where  Liberty  glorious  reigns. 

"  Melt  your  lances  to  ploughshares,  your  swords  into  spades, 

And  furrow  for  harvests  your  plains  ; 
No  shock  of  the  battle  should  startle  the  shades 
Where  Liberty  glorious  reigns. 

"But  Plenty  should  follow  where  Peace  leads  the  way, 
And  Beneficence  waken  her  strains  ; 


ZAPATERA.  169 

Let  the  war  bugles  cease,  and  the  peace  minstrels  play 
Where  glorious  Liberty  reigns. 

"  Nor  honor  is  won  from  the  battlefield  red, 
Nor  glory  from  tumult  and  strife  ; 
That  soldier  is  only  by  godlike  thought  led, 
Who  offers  his  country  his  life. 

''Ye  warriors  of  freedom,  ye  champions  of  right, 

Sheathe  your  swords  to  sweet  harmony's  strains  ; 
No  bayonet  should  gleam,  and  no  soldier  should  fight, 
Where  glorious  Liberty  reigns  !  " 


CHAPTER   XIX. 

THE    MEDITERRANEAN    OF    THE    WEST. 

WHILE  Leigh  and  the  party  of  adventurers  were  thus 
making  their  way  towards  the  cities  on  Lake  Nicara- 
gua, Captain  Frobisher  and  Alonzo  were  journeying  to  Grey- 
town  by  another  way. 

It  is  an  easy  thing  to  get  from  Greytown  to  Port  Limon, 
as  many  vessels  go  down  the  coast,  touching  at  Greytown  on 
the  way.  But  few  vessels,  as  we  have  said,  stop  at  Grey- 
town on  their  way  from  Colon  to  New  Orleans.  The  Atlas 
steamers  go  from  Jamaica  to  Greytown,  and  thence  to  Port 
Limon  fortnightly  ;  but  they  do  not  often  go  the  reverse  way. 
So  Captain  Frobisher  and  Alonzo  had  to  wait  for  the  coming 
of  a  steamer  launch,  that  occasionally  runs  from  Greytown 
to  Port  Limon. 

The  waiting  at  Port  Limon  became  tedious.  But  the 
launch  came  at  last,  and  the  two  found  themselves  outside 
the  foaming  bar  and  the  sheltering  island,  and  gliding 
towards  the  terrible  bar  of  Greytown,  with  long  lines  of 
cocoanut  trees  in  sight. 

There  is  an  inland  route  to  Greytown  by  muleback,  and 
boats  on  lagoons.  But  it  is  full  of  peril,  as  the  country  is 
unhealthy  to  strangers,  and  the  traveller  usually  has  to  sit 
in  a  cramped  condition  in  the  boat. 

170 


THE  MEDITERRANEAN  OF  THE  WEST.         \Jl 

The  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  the  Caribbean  Sea  have  been 
called  the  American  Mediterranean.  The  beautiful  waters 
of  the  west  are  here ;  their  shores  are  palm  lands  and 
tropical  gardens,  and  the  islands  of  the  Antilles  are  the 
mountain  tops  of  the  sea. 

In  1872  there  was  begun  a  coast  survey  of  this  sea  and 
its  islands,  which  has  been  continued,  and  which  tells  a 
marvellous  story  of  the  geological  ages. 

The  sea  is  a  world  of  curious  plants  and  strange  forms 
of  organic  life;  thence  the  Gulf  Stream  flows.  Here  are 
fishes  of  the  mountains  and  fishes  of  the  plains.  It  is  the 
most  interesting  of  the  submarine  worlds. 

The  islands  which  form  the  outer  barrier  of  the  Caribbean 
Sea  arc,  for  the  most  part,  connected  by  a  single  foundation. 
What  a  revelation  would  there  be  were  the  waters  to  be 
withdrawn,  and  the  ocean  world  be  left  spread  out  to  human 
view  ! 

The  plant  life  of  the  purple  sea  is  confined  to  the  tidal 
waters  near  the  coasts.  The  deep  sea  blooms  with  phos- 
phorescent flowers. 

Here  the  coral  builders  are  at  work.  It  may  be  said  in 
a  certain  sense  that  Florida  is  neither  the  work  of  God  nor 
man,  but  of  the  coral  masons  and  carpenters,  all  fulfilling 
an  intuitive  design.  These  minute  creatures  are  everywhere 
building  the  terraces  of  the  sea,  which  the  mango  covers, 
and  which  become  gardens  of  the  palm,  the  orange,  and  the 
cane. 


172  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

THE    STORY    OF    THE    COUNTRY    OF    THE    EARLIEST    CITIES    IN 
SPANISH    AMERICA WALKER    THE    FILIBUSTER. 

So  beautiful  is  Nicaragua  that  it  was  called  by  the  dis- 
coverers the  Paradise  of  Mohammed.  The  picture  afforded 
by  the  name  is  not  inappropriate.  Mere  was  a  land 
where  the  people  have  nothing  to  do.  The  animal  life  in 
man  predominates.  Put  here  men  were  as  animals.  The 
sun  cared  for  them.  They  needed  only  a  strip  of  clothing, 
and  the  fruits  of  the  earth  grew  without  labor  and  fed  them. 
To-day  was  all.  Yesterday  taught  them  nothing,  and  to- 
morrow promised  them  nothing  that  they  did  not  have  to-day. 
They  were  born,  they  sunned  themselves,  and  died. 

In  times  before,  the  conquerors'  temples  blazed  on  every 
hill.  A  Peru  was  here,  whose  fairy-tales  are  like  those  of 
the  golden  Incas. 

Nicaragua  was  discovered,  in  15 14,  by  Don  Pedrarias 
de  Avila,  Governor  of  Panama.  In  15  19  Don  Gil  Gonzalez 
de  Avila  set  out  from  Panama  to  the  north,  and  discovered 
Lake  Nicaragua.  He  found  here  a  great  chief,  or  cacique, 
whose  name  was  Nicarao,  and  from  him  the  country  received 
its  name  Nicaragua.  lie  penetrated  to  the  ancient  Indian 
city  called  Niquichizi,  now  the  city  of  Granada,  and  returned 
to  Panama. 

In  1523,  Don  Pedrarias,  the  discoverer,  sent  out  Don 
Francisco  Hernandez  de  Cordova  to  conquer  the  great  chief 
Nicarao. 

This  cavalier  was  the  founder  of  the  cities  of  Granada  and 
Leon.  These  were  among  the  earliest  cities  in  America, 
springing  up  nearly  one   hundred  years  before  the  landing 


WALKER    THE    FILIBUSTER. 


*73 


of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  at  New  Plymouth.  They  are  nearly 
four  centuries  old.  A  Spanish  immigration  came,  and 
Granada  grew  under  the  volcanoes  of  the  wonderful  lake. 
The  Indians  were  conquered,  and  became  the  burden-bearers 
of  the  imperious  adventurers. 

In  1840  General  Francisco  Morazan,  called  the  Washington 
of  Central  America,  attempted  to  re-establish  a  federal  re- 
public, but  was  in  the  end  driven  from  the  country. 

A  strange  story  is  next  associated  with  Nicaragua,  one  of 
those  stories  whose  suggestions  are  such  that  one  hesitates 
to  retouch  them  to  life.  Suggestion  in  books  is  no  ordinary 
power.  The  young  mind  follows  suggestions,  the  world 
does. 

There  was  born  in  Nashville,  Tenn.,  on  the  1 8th  of  May, 
1824,  a  restless  spirit,  who  believed  that  he  was  a  man  of 
destiny.  Like  Napoleon  he  imagined  that  fate  for  him  had 
set  in  the  heavens  a  star.  His  name  was  William  Walker. 
He  gained  unusual  accomplishments.  He  studied  law  in 
Nashville  and  medicine  in  Germany.  He  became  a  journal- 
ist in  New  Orleans  and  a  jurist  in  San  Francisco. 

He  was  a  man  of  ambition,  of  dreams,  lie  thirsted  for 
power,  fame,  influence.  In  1853  he  organized  an  expedi- 
tion for  the  conquest  of  the  state  of  Sonora  in  Mexico,  and 
landed  in  Lower  California  with  three  field  guns  and  one 
hundred  and  seventy  men.  lie  issued  a  manifesto  in  which 
he  proclaimed  himself  President  of  a  new   Pacific  Republic. 

In  1854  he  marched  to  Sonora,  but  was  arrested  by  the 
United  States  authorities,  tried  for  violation  of  the  neutrality 
laws,  and  was  acquitted.      I  lis  star  had  failed  him. 

Put   it  arose  airain  in    his   fancy.      lie   believed   in  the  doc- 


1/4  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

trine  of  the  divine  order  of  slavery,  and  he  now  planned  to 
erect  a  new  slave  state  in  Nicaragua,  the  "  Mohammed  Para- 
dise." lie  landed  in  Nicaragua  with  a  company  of  ardent 
adventurers,  and  after  many  struggles  he  took  possession  of 
the  city  of  Granada.  Me  was  joined  by  other  adventurers, 
and  in  March,  1856,  he  found  himself  at  the  head  of  twelve 
hundred  nun.  He  caused  the  Nicaraguan  general  to  be  shot, 
and  himself  to  be  elected  President  of  Nicaragua.  The  state 
had  abolished  slavery,  but  he  annulled  the  beneficent  act. 

He  was  now  at  the  height  of  his  power.  He  fancied  that 
his  star  shone  and  led   him  on. 

Insurrection  at  length  followed.  The  Central  American 
states  united  to  oppose  him,  with  the  agents  of  the  Vander- 
belt  Trading  Company.  He  was  defeated,  brought  to  trial, 
escaped,  but  struggled  against  his  fate.  In  i860  he 
attempted  to  lead  a  revolution  in  Honduras.  He  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  English  commander  there,  was  delivered  to 
the  Honduran  authorities,  and  shot.  His  star  went  out;  if  it 
had  any  purpose,  it  was  to  interest  the  world  in  Nicaragua. 

Next  came  the  project  of  an  interoceanic  canal,  through 
the  San  Juan  River  and  the  lakes  of  Nicaragua,  a  scheme 
that  glows  with  promise  for  Nicaragua  and  for  the  world. 

The  bright  birds  are  here,  the  sea-birds  and  land  birds. 
The  air  is  wings.  The  West  Indies  have  some  fifteen 
species  of  humming-birds,  jewels  of  the  air.  Here,  once, 
parrots  rose  in  flocks  like  clouds,  as  described  by  Columbus. 

Tlie  original  name  of  this  blooming  ocean  world  was  Antilia. 
The  navigators  fancied  such  a  land  in  the  ocean  of  shadows  ; 
they  found  it,  it  grew  ;  not  one  Antilia,  but  one  following 
another,  and  leading  on,  on,  ever  on,  to  the   mighty  regions 


THE    MEDITERRANEAN    OF    THE    WEST.  1/5 

of  the  Andes,  the  hinds  of  the  llama,  the  alpaca,  the  vicuna, 
and  the  condor. 

The  Caribs  were  the  inhabitants.  Enslaved  by  their  con- 
querors, they  began  to  disappear  from  the  time  that  the  gam 
of  the  Punta  shook  the  shores  of  the  Western  world. 

Antilia  became  known  as  the  Spanish  Main.  It  was  the 
land  of  fortune.  Then  the  world  called  it  the  West  Indies, 
and  so  it  remains.  It  only  awaits  the  Nicaragua,  Panama, 
or  other  canal  to  unite  it  in  one  common  ocean  way  with  the 
East  Indies,  thus  in  a  sense  fulfilling  the  dream  of  Columbus. 

The  old  tales  of  romance  and  adventurous  action  and 
achievement  of  the  Spanish  Main  would  fill  volumes.  But 
we  soon  forget  the  achievements  of  mere  money-makers. 
It  is  only  what  is  spiritual  that  has  real  value  and  lives.  He 
who  seeks  his  happiness  in  what  is  spiritual,  is  not  disap- 
pointed, and  all  others  are.  So  with  all  the  robbers  of  the 
Spanish  Main.      Sin  brings  us  nothing  to  keep. 

The  traveller  over  the  sea  loves  to  look  down  into  the 
plains  of  the  clear  waters.  The  dolphins  are  there  moving 
about  in  happy  companionship  in  pairs.  The  Hying  fish 
rise  up  like  birds,  and,  perhaps,  one  or  more  oi  them  tall 
unhappily  upon  the  hard  deck.      The  shark  is  there. 

Bright  fishes  are  there,  the  parrots  of  the  sea.  The  cham- 
bered nautilus  spreads  his  sail  there. 

There  in  a  world  of  fishes  and  birds  floats  the  sargossa,  or 
seaweed,  glistening  and  golden,  on  bladders  of  air.  And 
there  at  night,  deep  down  into  the  abysses,  the  bright  stars 
shine. 

It  is  delicious  to  drift  and  drift  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and 
the   Caribbean    Sea,   on    the   sky,  as  it  were,  oi    this  animated 


176  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

under-world.  The  day  is  a  splendor,  and  the  night  a  calm, 
and  both  bring  their  enchantments  of  shore,  sea,  and  air.  It 
is  a  delight  to  exist  here,  and  such  a  delight  that  the  mind 
for  a  time  looks  for  nothing  more.  It  is  a  sufficient  satisfac- 
tion to  be  grateful. 

But  the  blast  from  the  north,  coming  down  the  Mississippi 
valley  and  creating  the  hurricane  in  their  ardent  atmos- 
pheres, arouses  us.  Terrible  is  the  American  Mediterranean 
in  a  storm. 

The  explorers  of  the  coast  surveys  have  mapped  the 
under-world  of  the  sea.  We  may  behold  it  as  the  fishes  do  : 
mountain  and  cavern,  highways  and  coral  workshops,  where 
the  little  creatures  are  busy,  century  after  century,  in  making 
for  mankind  a  larger  world  for  better  people.  Such  is  the 
story  of  the  explorers. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  NICARAGUA  CANAL — ITS  PROMISE  OF  THE  FUTURE. 

NICARAGUA  !  The  name  is  an  "  open  sesame,"  a  magic 
word  ;  it  suggests  a  new  street  in  the  great  city  of  the 
whole  human  family — a  closer  brotherhood  of  mankind  and 
the  United  States  of  the  sea. 

Spain  had  the  vision  of  it  in  her  golden  days,  and  tried  to 
find  through  Central  America  a  highway  to  her  South  Ameri- 
can possessions. 

England  has  jealously  guarded  this  precious  spot  of  the 
earth.  She  protected  her  interests  in  it  by  the  Clayton- 
Bulwer  Treaty. 

What  is  the  substance  of  this  famous  treaty?  For  the 
sake  of  coming  events,  every  boy  should  know. 

In  the  splendid  spirit  that  followed  the  earl)-  development 
of  the  Republic,  men  hoped  that  the  Nicaragua  Canal  would 
be  built  for  the  good  of  the  world.  Rut  England  wanted  the 
privilege  of  accomplishing  this  work,  and  she  saw  that  the 
United  States  would  covet  the  same.  In  1N50  the  two  jeal- 
ous nations  entered  into  a  treaty,  called  the  Clayton-Ruhver 
Treaty,  which  may  be  ignored,  but  not  abrogated,  which 
pledged  that  neither  England  nor  the  United  States  will  ever 
exercise  for  itselt  any  exclusive  control  over  a  Nicaraguan 
("anal,  nor  erect  fortifications  to  command  that  canal,  nor  form 

N  177 


178  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

alliances  with  Central  American  states  having  such  ends  in 
view.  There  should  he  no  blockade  of  vessels  in  time  of 
war.  Both  nations  should  protect  the  neutrality  of  such  a 
canal.  Strangely  enough,  the  rights  of  Nicaragua  herself 
were  not  considered  in  this  compact ;  it  was  made  as  though 
England  and  America  expected  to  rule  the  sea.  Such  in 
substance  is  a  part  of  the  famous  Clayton-Bulwer  Treaty. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  far-seeing  England  should  have  sought 
for  such  a  compact. 

A  tonnage  of  10,000,000  per  annum  to  destinations  not  so 
easily  reached  by  the  Suez  Canal  and  other  routes  would 
yield  an  immense  revenue,  and  practically  change  the  com- 
merce of  the  world.  The  canal  at  the  time  of  the  treaty 
would  have  made  a  new  commercial  America ;  now  that  we 
have  built  a  network  of  railroads  everywhere,  have  a  navy, 
and  are  ready  for  expansion  on  the  sea,  the  importance  of 
such  a  new  gateway  to  the  Pacific  cannot  be  estimated.  It 
would  be  likely  to  change  the  conditions  of  the  west  coast 
of  both  North  and  South  America.  As  Benton  said  of  the 
Northwest  coast,  —  "There  lies  the  East  —  there  lies  India." 

Its  history  is  that  of  three  centuries,  and  yet  it  is  only 
begun.  In  1550  Antonio  Galvan  pointed  out  the  route  as 
the  natural  way  between  the  two  oceans. 

In  the  liberal  era  of  1825,  when  the  Central  American 
states  had  formed  a  federal  union,  Seiior  Don  Antonio  Jose 
Canaz,  minister  to  the  United  States  from  the  new  Republic, 
became  the  apostle  of  the  project  of  the  Spanish  vision  and 
awakened  the  interest  of  Henry  Clay. 

In  1826  an  attempt  was  made  to  build  such  a  canal  by 
private   enterprise,    but    it    failed    for   lack    of    subscriptions. 


THE    NICARAGUA    CANAL.  1^9 

Like  schemes  arose  from  time  to  time  for  many  years  with 
surveys. 

In  1844  Don  Francisco  Castellon,  of  Nicaragua,  went  to 
France  to  solicit  a  protectorate  over  his  country  for  the  sake 
of  building  the  interoceanic  canal.  This  and  other  French 
schemes  failed. 

England  now  began  to  seek  to  colonize  these  coasts  as  a 
protector  of  the  King  of  the  Mosquito  Indians.  This  plan  of 
local  influence  failed. 

Mr.  Vanderbilt,  of  New  York,  had  a  plan  for  a  canal  which 
was  not  executed.  Exploration  after  exploration  followed, 
and  in  each  new  administration  was  brought  forth  a  new  plan. 

In  May,  1880,  a  provisional  Interoceanic  Canal  Society,  in 
which  appeared  the  names  of  General  Grant,  General  McClel- 
lan,  and  many  leading  men,  obtained  from  the  Republic  of 
Nicaragua  a  concession  for  the  construction  of  a  canal.  The 
plan  failed  in  Congress.  It  was  changed  into  another  plan, 
which  was  unfavorably  affected  by  the  failure  of  the  firm  of 
Grant  and  Ward. 

Project  after  project  rose  and  fell.  The  work  now  is  in 
the  charge  of  the  Construction  Company,  of  which  Honorable 
Warner  Miller  was  made  president  in  1890.  This  gentleman 
went  to  Nicaragua  with  a  party  of  engineers  and  scientists, 
accompanied  by  government  officers,  and  a  thorough  survey 
of  the  route  was  again  made. 

What  a  new  chapter  in  this  history  will  be,  alter  so  many 
failures  and  changes,  one  cannot  say,  except  that  in  some 
near  time,  and  in  some  manner,  the  canal  is  as  certain  to  be 
built  as  any  probable  future  event  can  be. 

When  completed  it  will  make  a  new  map  for  the  world. 


l8o  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  Mosquito  coast  was  the  resort  of  the  buccaneers. 
Many  stories  of  these  sea-robbers  are  told  on  the  vessels 
trading  on  the  coast,  and  some  of  these  stories  have  been 
repeated  for  more  than  a  hundred  years.  Few  travellers  sail 
here,  or  any  ships,  that  do  not  hear  some  of  these. 

A    WITNESS    OUT    OF    THE    SEA. 

The  story  I  am  about  to  relate  has  been  told  on  many 
ships,  in  many  ways.  I  must  believe  it  to  be  the  most  inter- 
esting of  all  the  stories  of  the  sea;  for  it  is  in  the  main  true, 
as  relics,  still  to  be  seen  in  an  old  museum  in  Jamaica,  will 
bear  witness. 

In  the  days  of  the  buccaneers,  when  the  black  flag  of  the 
pirate  glided  like  a  snake  over  the  Spanish  Main,  seeking  its 
pre)-  among  the  treasure  ships  of  the  purple  seas,  an  English 
man-of-war  captured  a  vessel  which  was  supposed  to  be  that 
of  sea-robbers. 

Port  Royal  was  in  existence  then,  the  city  of  three  thou- 
sand houses,  that  afterwards  sank  into  the  sea. 

The  English  vessel  took  the  supposed  piratical  craft  into 
Port  Royal,  and  put  the  officers  and  crew  upon  trial  before 
the  Admiralty.  Put  the  strictest  examination  of  the  men  by 
the  court  failed  to  produce  any  evidence  that  the  ship  was 
piratical,  or  engaged  in  other  than  legitimate  trade. 

Put  a  suspicion  remained. 

The  men,  finding  themselves  thus  set  free,  were  in  high 
glee,  and  began  to  have  a  lively  time  in  the  rich  old  port, 
whose  remains  now  strew  the  bottom  of  the  sea.  Liquor 
flowed,  and  usual  oaths,  and  merry  gibes,  and  dark  droll  hints 
that  their  good  fortune  was  not  what  mi<rht  have  been  ex- 


A    WITNESS    OUT    OF    THE    SEA.  l8l 

pected  evidenced  that  their  high  spirits  were  not  altogether 
those  of  innocence. 

But  they  felt  safe. 

"  Marry,  Jack,"  said   one   tar  to   another,    "we  are   all   as 

secure  as  nursing  children ;  no  power  on  earth  could  ever 
touch  a  hair  on  our  heads." 

"  It  was  hut  little  that  I  expected  but  the  yard-arm,"  re- 
plied the  other.  "  But  all  the  powers  on  earth  could  never 
reverse  the  decision  of  the  Admiralty.  The  court  says  that 
no  evidence  can  be  found  against  us,  and  as  sure  as  the  stars, 
none  ever  can." 

The  sea-rovers  were  in  a  delirium  of  delight.  To  be  free, 
to  give  their  sails  to  the  blue  Caribbean  again,  when  they 
expected  hanging,  gave  them  an  exhilaration  that  they  had 
never  known  before. 

In  the  midst  of  their  hilarity  there  came  a  ship  from 
Hayti,  bringing  to  the  Admiralty  a  very  remarkable  object. 
It  was  a  shark  that  had  been  captured,  and  disembowelled, 
and  a  small  bundle  of  papers  had  been  found  in  the  fish's 
bod\'. 

The  papers  were  examined  by  the  officers  of  the  Admi- 
ralty. They  bore  the  name  of  the  ship  whose  officers  and 
crew  had  just  been  discharged  from  the  court,  and  with  them 
unmistakable  evidences  ot  their  piracy. 

The  government  prepared  to  rearrest  the  pirates,  and  to 
confront  them  with  their  own  papers,  and  the  evidences  ot 
their  guilt  which  had  been  found  in  tin.-  shark's  body. 

So  the  merry  men  were  called  together  again. 

"A  new  witness  has  appeared  in  the  case,"  said  the  judge 
to  the  pirate  chief. 


182  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"The  ship  that  came  into  the  port?"  said  the  latter. 
"That  is  impossible.     We  never  saw  that  ship  before." 

"  No  —  not  that.  The  sea  has  sent  a  witness  against  you 
—  there  is  a  providence  which  reveals  all  dark  deeds.  A 
fish  of  the  sea  has  come  to  bear  witness  against  you." 

The  pirate  was  superstitious,  and  trembled. 

"  You  threw  your  papers  into  the  sea.  A  fish  received 
them  and  kept  them.  Did  you  ever  see  those  papers 
before  ?  " 

The  judge  held  up  the  evidences  of  their  guilt  before  the 
pirates.  They  stood  as  dumb  as  though  the  heavens  had 
opened. 

"  In  them  read  your  death  warrants,"  thundered  the  Admi- 
ralty.     "  Guilt  carries  the  means  of  its  own  revelation." 

They  were  taken  to  the  gallows,  and  the  story,  which  is  in 
the  main  incident  true,  was  long  the  terror  of  the  Spanish 
Main.  It  is  claimed  that  these  papers  are  in  existence  to-day. 
Guilt  is  never  secure,  and  no  true  story  that  I  ever  met  more 
favorably  illustrates  the  truth  than  this. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE  LANDING  AT  GREYTOWN  —  A  NEW  INDUSTRY  —  THE 
PLANTING  OF  RUBBER  GROVES. 

CAPTAIN  FROBISHER  and  Alonzo  found  themselves 
at  the  foaming  bar  of  Greytown. 

The  landing  at  Greytown,  before  the  Atlas  Line  of 
steamers  provided  launches  for  the  purpose,  was  a  perilous 
matter  indeed.  There  are  few  bars  on  the  tropical  coast  on 
which  so  many  lives  have  been  lost.  The  surf  is  high  and 
raging;  the  sea  is  full  of  sharks,  and  when  a  boat  is  wrecked 
on  the  bar,  few  of  the  passengers  are  likely  ever  to  see  land 
again.  Even  with  the  launches,  which  are  wobbly  at  the 
vessel,  and  not  without  suggestions  of  danger  at  the  foaming 
bar,  the  new-comer  to  the  country  is  very  glad  when  he  finds 
his  feet  very  firmly  on  shore. 

There  is  a  good  hotel  in  Greytown,  and  the  place  is  made 
healthy  by  the  sea  winds  that  constantly  blow  upon  it. 

The  construction  works  for  a  new  canal  are  seen  here 
as  on  the  railroad  across  Panama.  The  "Newport"  of  the 
Walker  expedition  was  lying  off  the  bar  as  our  travellers, 
Captain  Frobisher  and  Alonzo,  landed  here,  and  it  is  thought 
that  the  American  Congress  will  be  influenced  by  the  report 
to  be  made  by  this  expedition  to  make  the  necessary  appro- 
priations for  the  undertaking  of  this  great  enterprise  of  open- 
ing a  direct  way  to  the  South  and  the  Orient. 

183 


184  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Alonzo,  always  seeking  for  new  opportunities  for  young 
people,  met  a  young  man  from  the  States  at  Greytown,  by 
the  name  of  Singer,  who  had  spent  nearly  two  years  in  the 
country,  and   who  thought  that   he  saw  a  new  need  of  the 

markets  of  the  manufacturing  world. 

"What  do  you  think  of  the  prospects  of  coffee  plantations 
in  this  country  ?  "  asked  Alonzo  of  the  young  man,  who  had 
lived  in  Boston  and  Minneapolis,  and  knew  so  much  of  the 
Hast  and  West  in  the  States. 

"I  think  it  is  good,"  said  the  young  man;  "but  to  my 
view  there  is  being  created  a  need  that  will  make  another 
industry  here  more  certain  and  more  profitable." 

"  .And  what  is  that  ?  "  asked  Alonzo. 

"The  raising  of  india-rubber.  The  wild  india-rubber 
trees  are  becoming  exhausted  by  the  india-rubber  hunters. 
This  is  a  natural  land  of  the  rubber  tree  ;  it  is  easily  grown, 
and  the  ports  for  disposing  of  rubber  are  near  and  easy. 
Had  f  means,  f  would  plant  india-rubber  groves.  In  a  few 
years  they  would  yield  a  product  that  would  be  far  more 
valuable  than  coffee,  and  the  groves  could  be  planted  at  less 
expense." 

"How  would  you  plant  the  groves,  my  friend?  I  seem 
to  see  that  there  will  soon  be  such  a  need  as  you  describe." 

"  Simply  by  placing  the  seeds  in  the  earth  of  lands 
that  cost  next  to  nothing.  The  young  trees  would  require 
no  cultivation.  One  would  only  have  to  wait  a  few  years 
for  them  to  grow  large  enough  for  them  to  be  tapped.  After 
that  time  they  would  yield  an  amount  of  rubber  juice  that 
would  bring  to  the  owner  a  large  yearly  income.  I  think 
that  the   growing  of  rubber  groves  here  will  become  a  great 


A    NEW    INDUSTRY.  1 85 

industry  on  the  building  of  the  canal.  Think  what  a  market 
there  must  soon  be  for  rubber,  owing  to  the  failing  supply, 
and  consider  also  what  a  great  port  city  on  the  new  canal 
would  offer  here  for  a  new  rubber  trade  !  " 

He  added  :  "  I  am  earning  and  saving  what  money  I  can 
and  am  putting  it  into  rubber  groves.  I  can  see  a  future 
need  of  this  product,  and  good  price  for  it,  especially  from 
this  country  if  the  canal  is  built." 

"I  think,"  said  Alonzo,  ''that  you  are  one  of  those  young 
people  who  see  their  opportunity.  There  is  something  in 
your  plan  that  appeals  to  my  common  sense,  although  I  am 
but  a  new-comer  here.  I  must  study  this  opportunity,  and 
inquire  at  the  consular  offices  about  it." 

Alonzo  and  his  uncle  went  to  Rivas  (old  Nicaragua),  situ- 
ated at  a  point  near  the  lake.  The  journey  was  like  an 
excursion  through  a  tropical  port,  though  here  everything 
was  rude,  crude,  and  delaying.  This  country  to-day  is  the 
land  of  inanana  (to-morrow);  but  it  will  not  be  the  land  of 
to-morrow  when  the  flags  of  all  the  lands  shall  pass  to  the 
ports  of  all  lands  through  the  new  canal. 

The  present  semi-civilization  will  pass  away,  and  soon  be 
as  dead  as  the  days  of  the  old  sea-robbers.  Spires  will  rise 
over  the  white  surf  of  the  serene,  purple  sea,  and  bells  will 
ring  in  them,  domes  of  commerce  will  burn  in  the  hot  air, 
and  men  of  progress  will  sit  at  the  desks  under  them  in  the 
cool  arcades.  Here  the  railroad  whistles  shall  break  upon 
the  silence  of  the  hills,  as  the  long  trains  of  coffee  and 
bananas  come  tugging  down  to  the  sea.  The  soul  ol  prog- 
ress is  to-day  restless  to  bring  about  the  wonder;  the  new 
world  of  Central  America  is  about  to  appear,  and  the  wonder 


1 86  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

that  will  come  with  the  new  century  will  break  the  continent 
and  tend  to  draw  into  closer  brotherhood  the  races  of  man- 
kind. 

From  Rivas,  or  old  "  Nicaragua  city,"  the  captain  and 
Alonzn  went  to  Granada,  and  the  party  with  which  Leigh 
had  gone  in  search  of  the  quetzal  had  already,  as  we  have 
pictured,  arrived  here. 

The  Mosquito  Indian  guide,  Apula,  now  left  Leigh  to  join 
a  party  of  rubber  hunters  on  the  coast.  He  parted  from 
Leigh  reluctantly. 

"It  may  be,"  he  said  in  his  broken  Spanish,  "that  I  will 
see  you  again.  My  eye  shall  be  for  your  safety.  I  look 
after  you.  You  have  a  good  heart.  The  Indian  never  for- 
gets a  good  heart." 

The  captain  and  Alonzo  and  Leigh  went  to  Rivas.  Leigh 
had  heard  that  there  were  most  beautiful  colonies  of  trogons 
on  the  northern  shores  of  Lake  Nicaragua.  Having  made 
one  adventurous  expedition,  he  now  planned  a  bolder  one, 
and  secured  his  uncle's  consent  to  go  up  one  of  the  rivers 
of  the  ancient  Xicaraguan  forests  with  guides  to  study  the 
botany  and  natural  history  of  the  country. 

"  You  should  have  kept  Apula,"  said  Captain  Frobisher, 
when  he  heard  Leigh's  account  of  the  faithful  Indian. 

"  I  am  sorry  that  I  did  not  try  to  do  so,"  said  Leigh.  "  It 
may  be  that  I  can  find  him  again.  I  would  feel  perfectly 
sale  with  him.  I  would  not  wonder  if  he  were  somehow  to 
follow  me." 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

LOST. 

LEIGH  left  his  uncle  and  brother  at  Rivas,  and  with  an 
Indian  boatman  and  a  guide  he  set  out  to  penetrate  the 
Nicaraguan  forest,  whose  immense  rubber  trees  were  famous 
for  rare  animals  and  birds,  and  especially  for  certain  splendid 
trogons,  among  which  was  the  royal  bird  of  the  Aztecs,  in 
all  the  glory  of  its  sunset  breast  and  sacred  plumes. 

His  boatman  and  guide  had  been  endorsed  as  perfectly 
trustworthy  Indians  by  the  india-rubber  traders,  and  were 
known  to  an  American  agent  at  Greytown,  who  had  said,  — 

"  You  will  be  as  safe  in  the  hands  of  those  men  as  in  those 
of  a  Rhode  Island  Quaker  or  a  Presbyterian  deacon." 

The  agent  had  seen  vice-consular  service  in  the  country. 

So  it  was  with  a  light  heart  that  Leigh  bid  his  friends 
good-bye. 

"I  shall  see,"  he  said,  "what  no  American  boy  before 
saw,  so  the  boatman  tells  me." 

The  boatman  was  right.  Leigh  had  an  experience  that 
was  probably  unlike  that  of  any  other  American  boy. 

They  glided  along  the  quiet  waters  for  a  time,  then  crossed 
to  a  stream  that  came  drifting  down  from  the  hills  through 
recesses  of  ancient  trees,  whose  limbs  formed  a  kind  of  natu- 
ral hedge  above  it  for  monkeys  and  animals. 

187 


[88  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  stream  led  into  an  almost  impenetrable  forest.  Mon- 
keys came  to  the  near  branches  of  the  trees,  as  if  to  inquire 
the  purpose  of  the  expedition,  and  threw  dead  wood  towards 
the  boat.  Trogons  were  there,  but  his  imperial  majesty,  the 
royal  and  sacred  bird,  did  not  appear  among  them. 

The  stillness  of  the  forest  became  oppressive.  The  waters 
were  shaded,  but  the  heat  was  intense,  and  there  arose  from 
the  dark  waters  a  steam  or  vapor  which  could  not  be  seen 
close  at  hand,  but  was  visible  at  a  little  distance. 

"There  is  fever  in  the  air,"  said  Leigh  to  the  boatman. 

"  Si,  Seiior,"  answered  the  boatman  truthfully,  but  plying 
the  oars  faithfully. 

"Malaria?"  said  Leigh  to  the  guide. 

"  Si,  Seiior." 

Leigh  began  to  take  alarm,  for,  notwithstanding  the  heat, 
he  felt  chills  at  times  creeping  down  his  back,  and  his  head 
began  to  be  dull  and  heavy. 

They  came  at  last  to  a  clearing,  where  were  abandoned 
huts  of  reeds  and  palm  leaves. 

It  was  near  nightfall.  The  red  sun  was  burning  through 
the  trees;  the  parrots  were  scolding,  as  often  before  settling 
down  for  the  night. 

"Shall  we  spend  the  night  here?"  asked  Leigh.  "We 
can  hunt  from  here  to-morrow.  This  is  an  abandoned  camp, 
once  used  by  the  rubber  men." 

"  Hunt  the  jaguar?"  inquired  the  guide. 

"  Yes  ;   or  any  other  animal." 

'  Xo  ;  not  it  you  follow  my  direction.  We  will  not  sleep 
in  the  huts,  but  under  our  white  mosquito  netting  in  the 
open   air.      Xo    beast   ever  attacks   one   who    spreads  a  white 


LOST.  189 

mosquito  netting  over  him  in  the  form  of  a  cage.  The  jaguar 
will  circle  around  it,  but  always  at  a  greater  and  greater  dis- 
tance. He  seems  to  think  that  the  open  net  is  a  trap, 
spread  to  ensnare  him.  The  longer  he  watches  it,  the  more 
wary  he  is  of  it.  They  all  seem  to  look  upon  a  white  net  as 
a  snare." 

The  guide  took  from  the  boat  a  mosquito  net  and  spread 
it  on  some  short  poles  in  a  curious  way,  so  that  it  looked  like 
a  large,  square  trap.  "We  can  sleep  under  that  with  perfect 
safety,"  he  said,  "  at  least,  so  far  as  the  wild  beasts  are  con- 
cerned. We  will  also  be  safe  from  snakes  and  poisonous 
insects.  But  we  have  another  enemy.  At  least  you  have, 
Leigh.      I  have  some  fear  of  it." 

"  What  is  that  ?  "  asked  Leigh. 

"The  white  air  that  you  saw  at  a  little  distance,  mist,  fog, 
vapor,  do  you  call  it  ?  It  is  poison  to  some  Americans.  It 
causes  swamp  fever.  Hut  you  may  escape  —  strangers  some- 
times do  who  have  temperate  habits.  It  is  a  foe  to  the  weak. 
Have  you  quinine  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Leigh. 

"  I  would  advise  you  to  take  a  little  of  it  before  you  lie 
down    for  the   night." 

The  guide  made  a  bed  of  palm  leaves,  and  spread  on  the 
ground  a  meal  of  stale  bread,  hard  eggs,  and  cheese. 

They  found  here  some  little  boats  that  were  constructed 
ot  mahogany  logs.  These  logs  were  hollowed  by  burning. 
Their  bottoms  were  charred.  Leigh  tried  one  of  these 
abandoned  boats,  using  a  paddle,  but  the  red  twilight  was 
soon  over,  and  he  came  back  to  the  net  and  lay  down  inside 
of  it  for  the  ni<rht. 


IQO  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  stars  rose  in  the  shadows  as  it  seemed,  and  hung 
above  the  trees.  The  darkness  became  dense,  even  under 
the  clear  stars.  The  air  grew  thick,  like  steam.  Leigh  could 
see  white  forms  of  mist  in  the  far-away  starlight.  His  head 
ached,  and  the  palms  of  his  hands  and  the  soles  of  his  feet 
burned. 

Xow  and  then  the  cry  of  some  wild  beast  was  heard  in  the 
far  forest.  If  any  animal  came  near,  it  did  not  venture  near 
the  white  net,  whose  form  was  clear  in  the  darkness. 

How  lonesome,  how  desolate,  how  wild  is  a  night  in  a 
tropical  forest !  There  are  foes  everywhere.  They  come 
and  go,  when  or  where,  one  does  not  know.  Every  sound 
is  an  alarm  ;  every  cry  of  beast,  or  note  of  bird,  is,  somehow, 
hostile  to  man. 

The  stars  look  friendly,  but  they  are  far-away  torches. 
The  moon  arising  lights  the  gloom,  but  only  to  reveal  doubt- 
ful shapes  in  the  shadows. 

Man  feels  there  a  friendlessness  nowhere  else  to  be  found. 
He  has  made  himself  an  enemy  to  the  animal  kingdom,  and 
the  animal  world  in  the  darkness  is  a  foe  to  him. 

The  very  air  has  its  dangers  as  well  as  the  thicket.  The 
ghosts  of  poison  come  unseen,  and  sometimes  invisibly, 
but  not  always.  Such  ghosts  may  long  tarry  to  haunt  the 
life,  or  may  take  the  life  away,  and  so  vanish  into  the  eternal 
silence. 

Leigh  awoke  the  next  morning  with  new  resolution.  His 
hands  and  feet  were  a  little  cold  ;  his  tongue  was  white,  but 
his  head  was  clear  again. 

The  forests  were  resounding  with  birds.  The  hills  seemed 
to  be   full  of  armies  with  wings.     Some  of  these  bird  calls 


_e:gh  leaped  into  one  of  the  mahogany  DUGOUT  BOATS." 


LOST.  I9I 

were  like  trumpet  blasts.  He  was  sure  that  among  all  these 
echoing  and  re-echoing  cries,  a  family  of  royal  trogons  would 
be  found. 

He  leaped  into  one  of  the  mahogany  dugout  boats  that 
had  been  abandoned  by  Indians,  or  possibly  by  hunters  for 
india-rubber  trees,  and  paddled  up  the  river  alone,  leaving 
his  boatman  and  guide  to  prepare  a  meal.  The  guide  kindled 
a  fire  for  the  purpose  of  making  coffee. 

The  banks  of  the  river  were  full  of  birds,  —  cranes,  trogons, 
and  gaunt  buzzards  in  ominous  flocks.  The  monkeys  scam- 
pered away  here  and  there  in  the  near  trees  as  he  passed 
along.     The  parrots  were  having  their  morning  scold. 

The  river  suddenly  widened,  and  there  lay  spread  out 
before  him  great  meadows  of  reeds  and  feathery  grasses. 

In  the  midst  of  these  meadows  of  high  grass  were  some 
great  trees  full  of  lianas,  parasites,  orchids,  and  birds.  A 
white  morning  mist  half  enveloped  them,  but  this  became 
dissipated  as  the  sun  arose. 

Leigh  gave  a  second  glance  at  these  monarchs  of  vegetation. 
A  flock  of  parrots  was  there  and  some  rose-colored  cranes. 

Hut  something  more  beautiful  was  there.  In  the  first  rays 
of  the  sun  he  beheld  a  resplendent  trogon,  which  he  felt  sure 
was  the  sacred  bird,  lie  held  his  boat,  and  looked  at  the 
feathered  wonder  with  admiration,  and  was  seized  with  a 
strong  desire  to  secure  that  particular  bird. 

1  low  ?  He  had  his  rifle  with  him,  but  it  was  not  a  tlead 
bird  that  he  wanted.  As  he  continued  to  gaze  on  the  beauti- 
ful king  of  the  world  of  plumes,  another  quetzal  in  the  same 
thicket  of  trees  came  into  view  —  then  another  and  another. 
There  seemed  to  be  a  royal  family  of  them. 


IQ2  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

He  began  to  study  how  to  get  to  the  trees.  The  place  was 
a  very  strange  one  —  the  most  remarkable  that  he  had  ever 
seen. 

He  was  on  a  placid  stream  under  great  trees.  Before  him 
was  a  dome-like  opening  of  high  reedy  grass,  taller  than 
his  head.  A  part  of  it  was  green  and  a  part  dry.  Beyond 
it  was  the  trees  and  lianas  in  which  were  the  splendid  tro- 
gons.  The  grass  plat  between  the  boat  and  the  trees  was 
about  one  hundred  feet  wide  and  twice  as  many  long. 

He  could  not  go  around  the  plat.  There  were  swamps  on 
each  side  of  it.  The  plat  seemed  once  to  have  been  an  eleva- 
tion like  that  on  which  the  great  trees  grew. 

Suddenly  a  very  strange  object  met  his  eye. 

He  pushed  open  the  reeds  with  his  paddle  where  it 
appeared.  It  was  a  stone  image.  It  leaned,  and  was  half 
sunken  in  the  great  bed  of  reeds. 

It  was  a  piece  of  sculpture.  It  had  two  heads  and  four 
hands.  One  of  the  heads  rose  above  the  other.  There  were 
inscriptions  upon  the  sides  of  the  stone. 

He  again  glanced  at  the  trees.  The  trogons  were  still 
there  in  all  the  splendor  of  green  and  crimson,  with  metallic 
lustres,  which  shone  in  the  risen  sun,  which  now  poured 
down   his  rays  over  the  open  space. 

He  resolved  to  cross  the  plat  of  reeds,  and  go  to  the  trees 
where  the  trogons  were.  How  should  he  secure  his  boat  ? 
He  would  drive  it  into  the  reeds  with  his  paddle  and  leave  it 
there  until  his  return. 

It  was  not  difficult  to  do  this  at  a  point  of  shallow  water. 
He  forced  the  mahogany  dugout  into  the  reeds,  out  of  view 
on  the  stream,  and  began  to  cross  the  plat  of  high  grass. 


LOST.  I93 

He  had  to  move  slowly  and  cautiously.  There  were  alli- 
gators here  and  probably  poisonous  serpents. 

He  broke  the  way  with  the  stock  of  his  rifle.  The  grass 
was  some  eight  or  ten  feet  high. 

The  ground  grew  harder  and  firmer  as  he  continued  to  beat 
a  path.  He  found  another  stone  image.  It  was  lying  in  the 
earth  with  only  the  upper  part  visible.  Had  there  once  been 
a  temple  here  ? 

He  passed  the  image.  The  grass  became  denser.  He 
made  more  resolute  efforts.  Suddenly  a  terror  seized  him  — 
his  heart  stood  still.  He  found  himself  sinking,  going  down 
from  the  matted  grass.  I  le  grasped  the  grass  with  one  hand, 
holding  his  rifle  with  the  other.  The  grass  tore  away.  He 
fell  many  feet  and  struck  on  soft  earth.  He  started  up  and 
looked  around.  He  found  himself  in  a  deep  pit,  the  top 
of  which  was  partly  closed  by  the  dry  grasses,  and  the  sides 
of  which  were  concave.  The  pit  was  at  least  twenty  feet 
deep. 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 


IN    AX    IDOL    CAVE. 


THE  pit  or  cavern  into  which  Leigh  had  fallen  was  shaped 
like  an  open  dome.  The  light  fell  into  it  through  the 
waving  grass  tops,  but  a  boatman  might  have  passed  the 
place  a  hundred  times  without  a  suspicion  of  the  existence 
of  such  a  curious  cavern  there.  The  heads  of  sculptured 
monuments  rose  anglewise  out  of  the  dead  leaves.  Had 
the  cavern  been  a  place  of  tombs  ? 

Leigh  was  filled  with  terror  and  apprehension,  but  he  did 
not  regard  his  case  as  hopeless.  He  could  not  climb  up  on 
the  inside,  for  the  roots  of  the  reeds  here  were  dry  and  broke 
away.  He  must  dig  out,  or  dig  up  to  firm  roots,  with  the 
stock  of  his  rifle. 

He  sunk  down  on  the  dry  leaves  to  plan.  In  the  middle 
of  the  cave  was  a  little  pool. 

As  he  was  thinking  how  best  to  climb  up  to  the  top  of 
the  mound,  he  heard  a  movement  among  the  dry  leaves. 
He  saw  a  huge  adder  uncoiling  there  on  the  edge  of  the  pool. 
Following  his  impulse,  he  struck  at  the  reptile  with  his  gun 
stock.  The  snake  rolled  about,  trying  to  lift  his  wounded 
head.  Leigh  struck  at  it  again.  The  slipper)-  body  of  the 
agitated  reptile  caused  the  rifle  to  slip  from  Leigh's  hand. 
As  it  did  so,  it  sunk  into  the  pool  and  disappeared. 

194 


IN    AN    IDOL    CAVE.  195 

Leigh's  heart  now  sunk.  What  place  was  this  ?  Where 
was  he  ?     Could  he  dig  out  of  it  with  his  hands  ? 

He  began  to  pull  at  the  roots.  They  broke ;  they  could 
sustain  no  weight. 

He  sat  down  on  one  of  the  nearly  buried  stones.  Among 
the  figures  graven  on  it  was  that  of  a  bird.  He  felt  sure  that 
it  was  the  image  of  a  quetzal. 

But  what  were  quetzals  to  him  now  ?  He  made  another 
effort  to  climb  up  the  side  of  the  cave  by  the  earth  and  roots 
of  dead  vegetation,  but  the  roots  gave  way,  and  the  earth 
caved  in.  His  hopes  began  to  waver,  and  he  felt  his  heart 
beating  violently.  A  burning  heat  came  over  him.  Was 
he  going  to  fall  sick  in  this  solitude  of  solitudes,  in  this 
cavern  of  which  no   man   knew  ? 

He  would  utter  a  cry  for  help,  but  who  would  hear?  He 
cried  out  again  and  again,  but  had  a  boatman  been  passing, 
he  could  not  have  heard  him.  His  voice  had  no  outlet  or 
echo. 

He  sank  down  again  and  wondered  if  he  wrere  to  perish 
here.  The  guide  and  the  boatman  might  pass  the  place  and 
not  find  him,  as  the  dugout  was  hidden  by  the  reeds  and 
grass. 

His  head  began  to  grow  dizzy.  He  would  try  to  rest  for 
a  moment  and  recover  strength  for  a  supreme  effort  to  dig 
up  the  cave. 

He  chanced  to  look  up.  The  light  was  glimmering  in 
the  grass  tops,  and  across  the  opening  of  the  cave  lay  a  huge 
alligator. 

Hope  after  hope  died  within  him  ;  but  all  hope  never  dies. 
Somehow  he  believed  that  he  would  be  rescued. 


IO/S  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

But  how? 

lie  thought  of  his  brother  at  Rivas,  of  his  good  uncle,  of 
his  New  England  home.  Were  all  his  plans  of  life  to  come 
to  an  end  in  this  utterly  unknown  place? 

The  top  of  the  cave  darkened  at  last.  Night  was  coming 
on.  Could  he  live  through  a  night  in  the  place?  If  he 
could,   what   hope  was  therein  the  morning? 

He  sank  down  exhausted.  His  left  side  seemed  inflamed 
by  the  beating  of  his  heart. 

In  the  night  he  heard  the  cry  of  the  jaguar  in  the  trees. 

Sleep  did  not  come  to  him.  He  thought  so  vividly  that 
his  dreams  of  rescue  seemed  to  be  actual   things. 

Suddenly  a  thought  came  to  him  that  thrilled  him  and 
caused  his  hope  to  revive  again.  He  had  with  him  a  red 
handkerchief,  such  as  were  sold  on  market  days  in  Nicara- 
guan  towns.  He  might  make  a  pole  of  dead  stems  of  the 
grasses  by  tying  them  together  with  shreds  of  clothing,  and 
lift  the  red  banner  above  the  tops  of  the  reeds.  The  hand- 
kerchief might  be  seen  by  the  boatman. 

There  was  a  single,  small  loaf  of  stale  bread  in  his  pocket 
that  he  had  taken  from  the  camp  to  eat  on  his  way  on  the 
stream.  He  would  partake  of  this  sparingly,  and  use  his  last 
strength  in  weaving  the   pole   for  the   signal. 

The   plan  was  a  desperate  one. 

The  morning  broke  with  a  great  screaming  of  birds. 
Leigh  ate  a  few  mouth fuls  of  the  bread,  and  set  himself  to 
the  work  of  weaving  the  pole.  He  spent  nearly  the  whole 
day  upon  it.  When  he  attempted  to  raise  it,  it  toppled  over 
and   fell. 

Nothing  but  nervous  excitement  and  a  faith  in   fate  sus- 


IN    AX    IDOL    CAVE.  1 97 

tained  him  now.  He  was  weak,  feverish,  in  a  prison  from 
which  escape  seemed  impossible.  His  friends  would  have 
searched  for  him  and  found  no  trace  of  him.  What  could 
they  do  ?  They  would  be  compelled  to  return  to  Rivas, 
and  to  report  that  he  had  disappeared. 

But  what  could  they  say  ?  That  he  had  been  killed  by  an 
alligator?  No,  for  where  was  the  dugout?  That  he  had 
been  attacked  by  a  jaguar?  No,  for  the  boat  would  in 
that  case  not  have  drifted  far.  That  he  had  been  drowned? 
The  boat  should  have  been  in  evidence  again.  He  might 
have  met  with  many  accidents  in  such  a  forest,  which  would 
have  caused  his  own  disappearance,  but  not  that  of  the  boat. 
The  guide  and  the  boatman  were  honest  men  ;  but  would  they 
have  the  courage  to  return  and  report  the  loss  of  their  pas- 
senger in  the  face  of  the  danger  of  being  falsely  accused  of 
causing  his  disappearance.  What  story  could  the)'  tell  ?  The 
truth  could  hardly  be  believed.  The  truth  would  seem  to 
bear  witness  against  them. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

THE    TIGER    CAT. 

LEIGH  had  noticed  that  these  forests  abounded  with  mon- 
i  keys.  He  had  twice  seen  a  long,  supple,  beautiful  ani- 
mal in  the  trees,  which  he  had  taken  for  a  jaguar,  but  which 
looked  too  small  for  that  animal. 

Once  when  he  was  on  the  boat  with  the  men,  he  had  seen 
a  like  animal  that  had  captured  a  little  monkey  that  was  cry- 
ing pitifully.  The  men  started  up,  and  the  tawny  animal 
with  the  monkey  disappeared  in  the  trees.  He  had  uttered 
the  word  "jaguar"  at  the  time,  but  the  men  shook  their 
heads.      He  thought  that  the  animal  might  be  a  young  jaguar. 

The  next  morning  there  was  a  stir  in  the  earth  at  one  end 
of  the  cavern.  Something  living  was  there.  Might  it  be 
a  serpent  or  some  burrowing  animal  ? 

A  little  earth  fell  down,  then  all  was  still.  Presently  a 
little  more  earth  fell  in  the  same  place,  as  though  something 
was  digging  there. 

Leigh  felt  a  certain  sense  of  relief  to  be  within  the  range 
of  any  living  thing. 

I  lis  hope  revived.  "  Where  any  living  creature  has  come 
doivn"  he  argued,  "  1  can  go  up.  There  are  no  animals  here 
that  are  dangerous  to  man  except  the  jaguar,  and  this  animal 

iq8 


THE    TIGER    CAT.  1 99 

lives  in  thick  coverts  and  trees.  If  there  were  pumas  in  this 
part  of  the  country,  such  must  inhabit  caves." 

lie  had  heard  the  rubber  men  say  that  the  puma  and 
jaguar  were  harmless,  unless  they  were  attacked  or  their 
young  were  in  danger. 

A  little  more  earth  fell. 

He  expected  to  see  the  head  of  some  burrowing  animal 
appear,  and  that  the  animal  would  be  frightened  away,  and 
where  it  had  dug  down,  that  he  would  be  able  to  dig  up 
and  follow  the  beast,  whatever  it  might  be,  into  the  light. 
His  heart  beat  fast ;  he  saw  in  his  fancy  a  sure  way  of  escape 
at  hand. 

More  earth  fell.  Then  a  paw  appeared,  now  and  then 
breaking  through  the  side  of  the  cave. 

The  paw  was  like  that  of  a  cat,  only  larger. 

"The  animal  must  be  of  considerable  size,"  he  thought,  and 
lie  felt  sure  that  he  could  escape  through  the  burrow  it  had 
made. 

A  considerable  quantity  of  earth  now  tumbled  in,  and  a 
head  indeed  appeared.  It  was  a  beautiful  head,  but  with 
sharp  teeth  and  defiant  eyes.  Its  mouth  was  open  and 
snarled  defiant]}'.  Hut  the  fur  was  sleek  and  of  a  yellow 
color  and  spotted  with  brown.  It  looked  like  the  animal  that 
he  had  seen  disappearing  in  the  trees  with  the  crying  mon- 
key. 

lie  thought  it  to  be  a  jaguar. 

The  animal  ceased  digging,  and  looked  at  him  in  a  defen- 
sive way.  Whenever  he  moved,  it  drew  back  its  small, 
pointed  ears  and  snarled. 

Presently  a  load  of  earth   gave   way,   and   the  animal    fell 


200  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

into  the  cave.  It  instantly  turned  and  disappeared.  Leigh 
felt  that  a  sure  way  of  escape  had  now  opened  before  him. 

lie  went  towards  the  opening  that  the  animal  had  made. 
It  was  dark  there,  but  he  was  able  to  discern  objects.  There 
was  another  cave  at  a  little  distance,  and  in  this  was  the 
animal  that  he  had  seen  and  two  little  animals. 

He  did  not  doubt  that  the  animal  was  a  jaguar,  and  that 
the  cave  was  the  lair  of  that  animal,  and  that  this  one  had 
scented  him,  which  had  caused  her  to  dig  through  the  wall 
of  earth  to  discover  if  there  were  danger  to  her  young. 
The  animal  started  when  she  saw  him,  snarled  again,  and 
breathed  defiantly.  He  could  not  leave  the  cave  while  she 
was  there,  and  she  would  not  be  likely  to  leave  her  young 
while  he  was  there. 

His  condition  was  more  perilous  than  before. 

He  sat  down  at  a  point  opposite  the  opening  to  the  bur- 
row of  the  animal.  The  yellow  color  made  her  almost  lumi- 
nous, and  he  could  watch  her  movements  in  the  dark. 

"  She  nursed  her  young.  She  will  carry  them  away  soon," 
he  thought,  "  and  I  can  follow  her  place  of  exit." 

After  nursing  her  young,  she  came  to  the  opening  and 
looked  at  Leigh,  drew  back  her  ears,  and  then  moved  in  a 
circle  around  her  young,  again  and  again. 

Then  she  lay  down  beside  her  young.  She  did  not  seem 
to  seek  to  attack  Leigh,  but  appeared  only  to  care  to  be 
watchful   of   her   young. 

After  a  time,  she  repeated  the  same  jealous  movement. 
Her  body  was  long  and  flexible  and  leopard  like. 

Leigh  saw  that  she  would  not  be  likely  to  attack  him,  nor 
to   leave   her  voung    alone  while    he    was   there.       He   must 


THE    TIGER    CAT.  201 

threaten  her,  so  that  she  would  take  her  young  away,  and 
enable  him  to  follow  her  way  of  escape. 

He  approached  the  opening.  She  rose  up  to  warn  him 
away,  passing  around  her  young  in  the  same  circle,  and 
growling  at  times  with  a  look  and  in  a  tone  whose  meaning 
was  unmistakable. 

"When  night  comes,  she  will  take  her  young  away,"  rea- 
soned Leigh.  "  She  must  go  away  for  food,  and  she  will 
not  leave  her  kittens  alone.'' 

In  the  night  there  was  a  great  growling  in  the  cave.  It 
increased  as  if  more  than  one  animal  was  there.  At  last  the 
sound  began  to  retreat.  Leigh  could  hear  it  farther  and 
farther  away.  He  thought  that  he  heard  it  outside  of  the 
cave  at  last,  in  the  direction  of  the  trees.  He  heard  also  a 
cawing  in  the  trees  —  the  bird's  notes  of  warning. 

He  now  thought  that  the  jaguar  had  taken  her  young 
away,  and  he  awaited  the  coming  of  the  light  with  new  hope. 

In  the  first  light  of  the  morning  he  went  to  the  opening. 
Another  animal  was  there,  larger  and  longer  than  the  first, 
and  beside  it  was  a  captive  monkey,  yet  alive. 

The  animal  stalled  up  as  he  saw  Leigh.  It  was  evidently 
a  male,  and  had  come  here  to  guard  the  young.  He  did 
not  snarl,  or  growl,  but  his  attitude  was  one:  ot  resolution. 
Leigh  saw  that  to  venture  one  step  more  would  be  perilous. 

His  ln-art  sunk.  I  fe  believed  that  the  animal  was  a.  jaguar, 
that  the  mother  would  not  take  her  young  away,  but  would 
leave  them  for  the  male  to  protect  ;  that  it  would  be  useless 
to  try  to  pass  by  either  while  the  young  were  there,  or  to 
intimidate  them,  or  to  frighten  them  away.  He  must  seek 
other  means  of  escape. 


202  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  animals  were  not  jaguars,  as  Leigh  supposed,  but 
ocelots,  a  tiger  cat  that  is  easily  tamed,  and  that  does  not 
attack  human  beings  except  for  its  own  defence  or  that  of  its 
young.  It  is  a  very  beautiful  creature,  with  yellowish  fur, 
which  has  chains  of  dark  brown  spots  along  its  sides.  It 
feeds  on  birds,  and  captures  monkeys  also  for  food,  often  by 
stratagems.  In  domesticity  it  may  be  fed  on  milk  or  por- 
ridge. 

When  Leigh  saw  the  ocelot  running  away  with  the  little 
monkey  in  the  trees,  he  only  thought  of  it  as  an  incident 
of  forest  life.  The  pitiful  little  cry  came  back  to  him  now. 
It  touched  his  heart.  He  had  never  known  what  it  was  to 
be  a  captive  before  —  to  find  himself  in  circumstances  from 
which  he  could  not  break  away  —  in  a  trap,  a  cage,  under  a 
powerful  paw. 

Another  incident  had  awakened  feelings  in  his  heart,  of 
which  he  did  not  know  before.  The  captive  monkey  in  the 
den  had  looked  towards  him  as  if  imploring  help,  as  if  to 
say,  "  Pity  me  !  "  The  glance  of  the  eye  was  almost  human. 
Leigh  longed  to  answer  that  glance.  He  had  a  tender 
heart  when  he  saw  suffering,  and  he  never  saw  as  now 
how  animals  may  suffer.  He  himself  was  like  an  animal 
in  a  cage  now.  The  animal  longed  for  the  freedom  of 
the  sun  and  woods  again  in  its  captivity;  it  was  its  right  to 
live. 

In  the  morning  the  poor  monkey,  though  broken  and 
torn,  attempted  to  escape.  It  rushed  into  the  cave  where 
Leigh  was,  and  made  a  leap  towards  the  opening  into  which 
the  sunlight  streamed.  It  might  as  well  have  attempted  to 
leap  over  Irazu.     It  fell  back,  and  was  seized  by  the  ocelot 


THE    TIGER    CAT.  2C>3 

and  dragged  again  into  the  den.  Leigh  heard  it  utter  a  cry 
of  sharp  pain,  and  he  never  saw  it  again. 

The  incident  showed  him  that  the  ocelot's  den,  which  he 
thought  to  be  a  jaguar's,  was  the  most  dangerous  part  of 
his  cave  dungeon. 

He  longed  to  be  free  with  his  uncle  again  ;  to  be  back  to 
the  old  New  England  orchards  of  Milton  ;  to  be  on  the  free 
streams  with  the  india-rubber  men ;  to  feel  again  that  he 
was  master  of  life,  and  not  a  prisoner  of  circumstances. 

The  world  all  looked  different  to  him  now.  He  pitied 
every  one  in  distress  ;  his  heart  went  out  to  animals  in  cap- 
tivity. He  resolved  to  live  a  life  of  mercy,  sympathy,  and 
helpfulness,  should  he  ever  be  free  again  ;  to  help  every  one, 
and  to  hinder  no  one,  and  seek  his  happiness  in  the  happi- 
ness that  he  created  in  others,  which  now  looked  to  him  to 
be  the  highest  joy  that  could  be  found  in  the  world. 

Had  he  known  that  the  supposed  jaguar  was  an  ocelot,  he 
might  have  further  seen  the  possibilities  of  a  gentle  hand. 

A  second  night  in  the  cave  had  greatly  reduced  the  boy's 
strength.  Lying  awake  and  feeling  about  in  his  pockets  in 
a  state  of  nervous  excitement,  he  suddenly  touched  some- 
thing that  again  caused  his  hopes  to  revive.  In  a  side 
pocket  were  three  matches. 

A  new  thought  flashed  across  his  mind.  lie  might  lift 
a  lighted  match  on  the  pole  that  he  had  woven  of  dry  stems 
and  set  the  dry  grasses  at  the  top  of  the  cave  on  tire.  He 
mended  the  pole. 

The  column  of  smoke  might  be  seen  by  some  boatman 
on  the  river  and  lead  him  here  to  learn  the  cause. 

It  was  night  when  the  thought  came  to  him.      He   had  but 


204  LOST    IN    XICAKAC.UA. 

three  matches,  and  he  must  use  these  in  his  experiment  with 
the  greatest  care. 

Hut  a  morsel  of  food  was  now  left  him,  and  he  must  lose 
no  time. 

lie  lighted  the  first  match  in  the  darkness.  There  was 
no  breath  of  air  in  the  cave  and  it  burned  well.  He  gathered 
a  bundle  oi  sticks  on  the  edges  of  the  cave,  and  set  them  on 
fire.     There  being  no  draught,  the  stems  burned  slowly. 

I  Ie  lighted  the  top  of  the  mended  pole.  It  burned.  Me 
could  reach  the  dry  grass  at  the  top  of  the  cave  with  it. 
He  did  so  with  a  trembling  hand. 

A  flame  shot  up  into  the  air.  The  reeds  and  grasses  were 
on  fire.  In  a  few  minutes  the  top  ot  the  cave  stood  open  in 
the  flame.  As  the  winds  swept  the  smoke  away  from  the 
opening,  the  very  heavens  seemed  to  be  on  fire. 

Monkeys  in  the  trees  began  to  scream.  Leigh  could  hear 
the  flames  rolling  over  the  reedy  meadows.  The  reeds  and 
grasses  were  very  dry,  and  about  the  swampy  bottom  were 
collected  the  inflammable  stems  of  years. 

The  morning  broke  amid  smoke  and  flame.  The  air 
resounded  with  cries  of  birds  and  animals.  If  Leigh  could 
reach  the  top  ot  the  cave,  there  would  be  no  danger  now 
from  alligators.  Hut  this  could  not  be  done.  He  lay  on  the 
dry  leaves  looking  out,  and  watching  the  smoke  ascend  from 
the  still  burning  stems  outside  of  the  cave. 

Then  the  fire  in  the  reeds  on  the  mound  died  away.  The 
birds  ceased  to  cry.  The  sun  was  up.  A  dead  silence  came 
over  everything.  Leigh  had  indeed  made  a  signal.  Hut 
who  could  see  it  ?  Would  it  be  seen  ?  Would  the  blackened 
reeds  attract  some  boatman  after  the  fires  had  died? 


A    FRIENDLY    FACE.  2C>5 

He  was  weaker  now.  He  was  without  food  or  clothes, 
or  any  power  to  do  anything  more. 

It  was  approaching  high  noon. 

The  top  of  the  cavern  stood  open  now.  Leigh  could  see 
the  sky.  Suddenly  the  air  was  filled  with  black  wings,  like 
a  cloud.  The  light  seemed  darkened  with  buzzards.  The 
fire  had  evidently  killed  some  animal  or  animals,  possibly 
an  alligator  or  alligators,  if  anything  could  destroy  life  in 
such  a  creature,  or  perhaps  some  colony  of  water  animals 
that  had  found  a  covert  there.  Leigh  never  knew  what 
caused  it,  but  hundreds,  and  it  seemed  to  him  thousands, 
of  buzzards  covered  the  burnt-over  mound  and  began 
quarrelling  over  some  kind  of  food  which  they  found 
there. 

One  buzzard,  with  a  morsel  of  food  in  his  mouth,  dropped 
into  the  cave. 

The  buzzards  went  as  suddenly  as  they  had  come.  The 
air  was  black  with  flying  wings,  and  evidently  a  man  or  a 
jaguar  or  some  animal  was  approaching  the  place. 

There  was  a  footstep,  very  light  as  it  seemed,  on  the  verge 
of   the  cave.      Leigh  feebly  shouted  and  looked  up. 

A  dark,  withered  face  stretched  over  the  edge  of  the 
opening,  slowly,  cautiously.  It  was  the  face  of  an  old 
Indian,  an  ancient  Xicaraguan,  with  black  eyes,  black  hair, 
hollow  cheeks,  and  thin  lips.      He  looked  like  Apula. 

Leigh  stretched  up  his  hands. 

The  ancient  Indian  comprehended  the  case  at  once  and 
drew  himself  up,  and  at  once  with  the  greatest  vigor  began 
to  cut  the  earth  with  his  heavy  machete.  He  swung  his 
arms  as  though  it  was  the  lite  of    a   brother  that  was  in   peril. 


206  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Blow  followed  blow,  and  the  earth  and  roots  came  tumbling 
down  into  the  cave. 

He  soon  had  broken  down  the  roof  of  the  cave.  As  he 
did  so  another  remarkable  thing  happened.  As  the  top  of 
the  roof  tumbled  in,  it  revealed  a  stone  image  some  twelve 
or  more  feet  high.  The  Indian  dropped  down  upon  this,  and 
from  it  leaped  into  the  cave. 

But  he  stepped  on  the  brink  of  the  pool,  and  in  almost  an 
instant  disappeared. 

But  a  hand  was  lifted  out  of  the  water.  The  ancient 
Indian  was  rising  up  from  the  well,  or  pool.  Leigh  seized 
his  hand,  which  could  show  his  will,  but  without  strength. 
The  Indian  was  Apula. 

The  Indian  climbed  over  the  edge  of  the  pool  and  ex- 
claimed, — 

"Salnd!" 

He  saw  that  Leigh  was  famishing.  He  knelt  down  and 
drew  the  boy's  arms  over  his  back,  and  held  them  together  on 
his  breast  with  one  strong  hand,  dropped  his  machete  into 
his  belt,  and,  rising,  lifted  himself  and  Leigh  up  by  the  image. 
He  soon  gained  the  top  of  the  cave,  carried  Leigh  to  the 
shadows  of  the  great  trees,  where  the  quetzals  had  first  ap- 
peared, and  laid  him  down  on  the  cool  ferns. 

He  then  rushed  away  and  soon  returned,  bringing  Leigh 
the  fruit  of  the  wild  bread  tree,  and  fruit  juice  from  some 
unknown  habitation. 

Leigh  revived  at  once.  The  breadfruit  gave  him  a  new 
sense  of  life.  The  Indian  went  away  again  and  returned, 
bringing  him  black  cooked  frijoles  and  plantains.  A  cabin 
was  evidently  near,  or  some  encampment. 


A    FRIENDLY    FACE.  207 

It  was  the  latter.  Apula  and  others  were  going  into  the 
deep   forests  to  ///////  for  rubber  trees. 

As  soon  as  Leigh  could  walk,  Apula  led  him  to  the  en- 
campment. 

The  party  of  Indians  with  whom  Leigh  had  embarked  had 
gone  away.  He  would  follow  the  party  of  Apula.  But  how 
was  he  to  get  word  of  his  safety  to  his  friends  at  Rivas  ? 
Apula  told  him,  in  his  Spanish-English  way,  that  the  party 
would  soon  return  to  the  lake,  and  that  he  would  send  a  mes- 
senger to  the  consul. 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

APULA. 

LEIGH  felt  that  he  owed  his  life  to  the  old  Indian,  and 
sought  every  occasion  to  show  his  gratitude.  He  helped 
him  in  little  things.  This  sympathy  deepened  the  old  man's 
quick  affection. 

Apula  loved  to  he  near  Leigh.  To  point  out  to  him  curious 
things  on  the  sea  and  land.  They  sat  and  enjoyed  the  sun- 
rises and  sunsets  together.      They  were  like  comrades. 

"Domic  vara?"  which  Leigh  understood  meant  that  he 
wished  to  ask  him,  not  where  he  was  going,  but  what  was  his 
purpose  in  travelling.     To  this  Leigh  returned,  — 

"  Comprar  quetzal  (to  buy  a  quetzal)." 

The  old  man  lifted  his  hand  and  stared.  He  then  shook 
his  head.  "The  same  boy,"  he  said,  meaning  that  he  was 
bent  on  the  same  errand.  Apula  spoke  English  after  his 
own  idioms.      His  language  was  that  of  the  Mosquito  tribe. 

"  Le  quetzal  del  reys  (the  quetzal  of  the  kings)?" 

"  Si"  said  Leigh.      "The  quetzal  of  the  kings." 

"  In  Guatemala  ?  " 

Apula  then  spread  out  his  hands  as  if  in  worship,  and  said 
again,  "  Le  quetzal  del  reys"  implying  that  the  old  kings 
worshipped  or  greatly  venerated  the  bird. 

••  I'aya    usted    Guatemala   (Go    you    to    Guatemala)?"    he 

208 


APULA.  209 

said,  "  en  montana  ?  "  He  added  in  English,  "  Apula  will  go 
with  you,  one  day." 

Leigh  had  often  heard  that  the  true  quetzal,  the  real  royal 
trogon  of  the  ancient  temples,  was  only  to  be  found  in  the 
mountains  of  Guatemala. 

Apula  seemed  greatly  surprised  that  Leigh  should  still 
be  searching  for  the  sacred  bird.  "The  same  boy,"  he  said  ; 
"  the  same  bird." 

One  day  the  sun  set  in  a  blaze  of  fiery  red  clouds.  The 
heavens  seemed  to  be  a  sheet  of  crimson  fire. 

The  Indian  pointed  to  the  red  glow  and  said, — 

"The  quetzal,"  and  made  a  circle  on  his  breast,  indicat- 
ing that  the  breast  of  the  bird  was  like  the  sunset.  "  Guate- 
mala quetzal !  " 

As  they  were  sailing  the  shadow  of  a  passing  cloud  turned 
the  purple  water  into  a  deep  sheeny  green.  The  Indian 
screamed,  — 

"The  quetzal,"  and  he  patted  Leigh  on  the  back  to  in- 
dicate the  wings  of  the  quetzal. 

At  another  time  the  flashing  spray  turned  into  rainbows 
as  the  boat  moved  along,  and  the  Indian  made  the  same  ex- 
clamation, meaning  that  the  quetzal  was  like  a  broken  rain- 
bow. 

But  he  endeavored  to  describe  to  Leigh  the  habits  of  the 
bird  in  a  way  that  the  latter  could  not  understand.  They 
were  on  the  beach,  under  a  tent  of  dry  palm  leaves  which 
was  open  at  each  end. 

"The  quetzal,"  he  said,  and  he  entered  the  tent  very 
carefully,  looking  down  to  one  side  of  him  and  then  the 
other,   and   holding   his    sea    frock    tightly  around    him.      He 


2IO  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

passed  in  this  way  through  the  tent,  as  if  he  were  a  bird 
guarding  her  plumage,  and  came  out  the  other  side  and  be- 
gan to  whistle  very  low  and  sweetly.  Then  his  voice  swelled 
out  in  undulations  of  rapturous  tone,  and  he  turned  to  Leigh 
and  said  again,  — 

"  The  quetzal." 

Leigh  understood  that  he  meant  by  the  whistle  to  imitate 
the  song  of  the  royal  bird ;  but  he  did  not  understand  the 
meaning  of  his  careful  movement  through  the  tent.  Did  the 
quetzal  make  a  tent  for  its  nest  and  come  out  of  it  and  sing  ? 

The  Indian  saw  that  he  had  not  been  understood  in  the 
imitation  of  the  habit  of  the  bird.  He  repeated  the  move- 
ment. As  he  entered  the  tent,  he  said  "into"  (one),  and  as 
he  came  out  of  it  whistling,  he  said  "  dos"  (two),  and  point- 
ing to  the  two  openings  of  the  palm  cover,  exclaimed,  — 

"  Casa  de  quetzal  (the  house  of  the  quetzal),"  by  which 
Leigh  understood  that  the  nest  of  the  quetzal  had  two  doors. 

Why  ? 

Was  it  so  that  it  might  not  ruffle  its  plumage  ? 

Leigh  was  curious  to  know  if  his  interpretation  of  the 
Indian's  dumb  exhibition  was  correct.  He  would  learn  about 
the  nest  of  the  bird,  if  he  found  quetzals  in  Guatemala. 

As  often  as  they  saw  trogons,  the  Indian  would  shake  his 
head  and  say,  with  a  look  of  contempt,  — 

"  Xa,  na,  no  quetzal"  indicating  that  the  trogons  were 
altogether  inferior  to  the  royal  bird. 

Apula  picked  up  new  words  from  Leigh  in  answer  to 
questions  made  in  imperfect  Spanish.  He  asked  him  what 
was  the  English  word  for  descubrir,  and  with  much  aptness 
said,  with  an  expression  of  delight, — 


APULA.  211 

"  I  will  discover  you  one." 

He  looked  intently  into  Leigh's  eyes.  "  I  find  you 
one." 

What  did  he  mean  ?  He  could  hardly  be  going  to  the 
mountains  of  Guatemala.  The  distance  by  sea  was  great, 
and  the  mountains  were  far  from  the  coast. 

But  he  repeated,  — 

"I  find  you  one,"  and  added,  "in  Guatemala." 

Leigh  wished  to  show  the  Indian  how  kindly  he  felt  towards 
him.  He  knew  not  how  best  to  do  it.  He  had  a  ring  on 
his  finger,  with  a  bit  of  fire  opal  in  it.  It  had  no  sacred  value, 
as  it  had  been  given  him  by  Arline  J  to  remind  him  not  to  for- 
get some  home  errand  when  they  were  living  at  Milton,  and 
he  had  continued  to  wear  it,  not  as  a  keepsake,  but  because 
the  opal  burned  with  a  sharp  flame,  and  he  sometimes  liked 
to  see  the  mysterious  point  of  fire. 

Apula  noticed  the  ring,  and  his  eye  was  often  drawn  to 
the  tiny  blaze,  as  it  revealed  some  new  glint  of  color. 

Leigh  could  spare  the  ring,  and  one  evening  as  they  were 
lying  on  the  ground  side  by  side,  and  the  fire  of  the  sunset 
was  going  out  in  the  high  palms,  he  took  it  off  his  finger, 
and  said  to  Apula,  pointing  to  the  red  flame, — 

"  The  quetzal." 

"Si,"  said  Apula,  "  le  quetzal." 

Leigh  lifted  the  ring  and  turned  it  in  the  light.  The  Ind- 
ian's eves  glowed  as  he  watched  the  tiny  ruby  flame,  burn- 
ing and  changing  color  in  the  gold.  Leigh  took  Apula's 
withered  hand  and  slipped  the  ring  over  his  index  finger. 

"  I  give  it  to  you,"  he  said  in  Spanish. 

1  Sec  "Over  the  Andes." 


212  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  poor  old  Indian's  lips  began  to  quiver.  Tears  came 
into  his  eyes.  He  pointed  to  Leigh's  finger  where  the  ring 
had  been  and  said,  — 

"  You  none." 

Leigh  replied  in  Spanish,  — 

"  I  would  rather  that  you  would  wear  it  for  me." 

"  Siemprc?  (always),"  asked  Apula. 

"  Siemprc"  said  Leigh. 

The  Indian  touched  his  heart  with  his  hand,  and  then 
tapped  Leigh  on  his  shoulder,  and  said,  — 

"  I  find  you  the  quetzal  in  Guatemala.      I  die  for  you." 

He  lifted  his  withered  hand  in  the  fading  light  and 
watched  the  opal  as  it  flashed.  Leigh  saw  that  Apula  was 
fully  resolved  to  secure  the  royal  bird  for  him,  but  where, 
when,  and  how?     He  had  won  the  old  Indian's  heart. 

Water,  forests,  mountains,  dangers,  hardships,  were  nothing 
to  an  Indian  when  he  wished  to  secure  a  purpose  from  the 
motive  of  love.  To  favor  one  who  has  gained  his  affections 
is  a  supreme  passion  with  him.  Leigh  was  certain  that  a 
royal  trogon  would  be  returned  to  him  for  the  ring.  He 
could  trust  Apula  to  accomplish  anything  within  human 
power.  The  sympathy  that  gives  a  gem,  wins  a  crown. 
Leigh  could  read  the  Indian's  heart,  but  he  could  not 
fancy  the  way  in  which  the  bird  and  the  hunter  would 
some  day  come  to   him   together.      But  they  would  come. 

Apula  had  seen  opals,  but  never  one  set  in  gold  before. 
The  burning  gem  became  to  him  what  the  bird  was  to  the 
imagination  of  Leieh. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 


THE    RUBBER    HUNTERS. 


"  jrilXGA  /"  said  Apula 
*         understood.    (Come  ! ' 


to  Leigh,  which  word  the  latter 
(Come ! ) 

Leigh  followed  him.      He  knew  that  he  was  now  safe. 

They  came  to  a  camp  under  some  immense  trees  that 
spread  their  umbrella  tops  in  the  high  air. 

Had  Apula  been  watching  for  his  safety  since  first  he 
started  ? 

There  were  four  men  in  the  camp,  and  they  started  up 
with  a  wild  cry  as  they  saw  old  Apula  returning  to  them  with 
a  white  companion.  They  were  rubber  hunters,  and  their 
boats  lay  on  the  banks  of  the  near  stream.  To  these  hunters 
Apula  seemed  to  act  as  chief. 

Leigh  tried  to  tell  them  in  Spanish  that  he  wished  to  send 
a  word  to  Rivas.  They  answered  him  with  much  talk,  which 
he  understood  to  mean  that  he  must  first  go  with  them  or 
return  alone. 

He  tried  to  think  what  he  best  should  do.  He  could 
secure  a  dugout  of  mahogany  wood  for  a  journey  down 
the  stream,  but  it  would  not  be  safe  for  him  to  try  to  cross 
the  lake  alone  in  his  exhausted  and  feverish  condition.  He 
had  received  one  severe  lesson  indeed  of  the  dangers  of  the 
country,      lie   must    put    himself   under   the   care   of   Apula, 

21 ; 


214  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

make  him  understand  that  he  would  be  well  rewarded  for 
returning  him  to  Rivas,  and  follow  him  into  the  forests 
whithersoever  he  might  go. 

His  friends  would  think  him  lost  or  dead,  but  that  could 
not  be  helped.  The  United  States  Consul  would  act  as  his 
friend  whenever  he  should  return.  The  consulate  is  the 
common  country  of  all  lost  people,  and  he  had  met  the  United 
States  Consul  of  Greytown  at  Rivas. 

The  party  of  Indians  carried  with  them  buckets  and  great 
machetes.  They  were  living  on  fish,  stale  bread,  and  fried 
plantains,  and  seemed  to  agree  wonderfully  well  among  them- 
selves. 

They  pushed  on  into  the  forests.  When  they  came  to 
open  spaces  between  clusters  of  giant  trees  with  sunny 
tops,  the  homes  of  many  birds  and  monkeys,  they  some- 
times stopped  and  went  in  search  of  rubber  trees,  which 
they  milked.  That  is,  they  tapped  them  with  a  slash  of 
the  machete,  and  filled  their  buckets  with  the  rubber  juice. 

Old  Apula  taught  Leigh  how  to  gather  breadfruit,  and  to 
fry  fish  and  plantains,  and  to  prepare  the  food  for  the  hunters. 
The  Indians  left  Leigh  to  keep  camp  for  them  when  they 
went  in  search  of  the  great  trees. 

Leigh  could  trust  Apula.  He  felt  no  fear  for  his  own 
safety,  for  he  had  somehow  got  at  the  heart  of  the  old 
Indian  who  had  rescued  him.  The  thought  of  the  anxiety 
of  his  friends  haunted  him  continually.  Had  it  not  been 
for  this,  his  life  would  have  become  a  charmed  one  with  the 
recovery  of  his  health. 

What  days  were  these  ! 

The  sun   rose  and  set,  but  he  saw  it  not,  only  the  bright 


THE    RUBBER    HUNTERS.  21  5 

glimmer  of  rays  in  the  immense  tops  of  the  trees.  Lianas, 
like  cords  of  a  ship,  seemed  to  anchor  every  great  tree  to 
the  earth.  Splendid  orchids  depended  from  mossy  limbs; 
the  tops  of  many  of  the  trees  were  gardens  of  fantastic 
parasites  with  burning  colors. 

These  blazing  flowers  were  the  nesting  places  of  birds  as 
gorgeous  in  color  as  were  the  blooms.  The  tree-tops  were 
full  of  life.  Below  them,  except  for  the  crocodiles,  all  was 
silent.     The  shadowy  silence  was  sometimes  painful. 

There  was  a  Quaker-like  bird  that  used  to  come  to  Leigh 
when  he  was  about  his  work,  that  seemed  to  have  such  a 
New  England  character  in  his  plumage  that  he  came  to 
love  it  above  all  others.  It  was  half  white  and  half  brown, 
and  the  colors  were  divided  in  the  middle.  The  head  and 
neck  and  shoulders  were  white  like  a  kerchief,  and  the  rest 
of  the  body  was  a  Quaker  brown. 

The  strange  thing  about  the  bird  was  that  it  had  whiskers. 
Its  true  name  was  the  calandria.  When  Leigh  was  waiting 
for  food  to  cook  by  the  fires  made  of  sticks,  he  would  study 
this  beautiful  whiskered  Quaker  bird,  and  dream  of  the 
Milton  Mills,  where  the  brown  thrushes  sang.  He  would 
have  given  more  for  a  calandria  than  the  grandest  trogon, 
except  the  true  historic  bird  that  he  was  seeking. 

There  were  multitudes  of  trogons  here  —  cities  of  them. 
They  wore  in  these  glowing  solitudes  all  the  colors  caught 
from  the  atmospheres  of   the  sun. 

The  Indians  were  fast  filling  their  boats  with  rubber. 
Leigh   expected   that   the)-   would   soon    return   to   the   lake. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

THE    WILD    PALM    FOREST    AND    THE    ALLIGATOR    BIRD. 

AT  one  of  the  places  on  the  winding  stream  where  the 
rubber  hunters  stopped,  there  appeared  a  wild  palm 
forest.  It  was  vast  in  extent;  every  tree  looked  just  like 
every  other  tree,  and  seemed  to  be  of  the  same  height,  and 
the  whole  stretching  far  away  glistened  like  a  sea. 

The  hunters  left  Leigh  here  to  guard  their  boats,  to  make 
a  fire,  and  to  prepare  food  and  coffee  for  their  return. 

They  told  him  they  were  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Hidden 
River  (famous  as  a  hiding-place  for  pirates  in  the  days  of 
the  buccaneers).  Where  this  was,  Leigh  could  not  know.  A 
vast  wilderness  lay  around  him,  and  the  stream  had  so  nar- 
rowed that  the  boat  had  been  passing  under  bridges  of 
limbs  overhead.  At  some  places  the  boatmen  had  to  push 
back  the  foliage  in  order  to  make  their  way. 

Fantastic  and  beautiful  was  much  of  this  foliage,  starred 
with  red  and  orange  blooms.  Water  lilies  rose  here  and 
there  out  of  the  margins  of  green,  and  at  several  points  the 
rcina  del  nocJic  (the  queen  of  the  night),  or  night-blooming 
cereus,  appeared.  Alligators  were  often  seen  with  their 
heads  turned  towards  the  wider  parts  of  the  stream. 

The  rubber  hunters  went  away,  but  they  did   not  return 

216 


THE    WILD    PALM    FOREST.  217 

that  day  nor  the  next.  They  had  evidently  found  new  trees, 
and  had  waited  for  the  juice  to  harden  before  attempting  to 
convey  it  to  the  boats. 

Leigh  passed  the  first  day  in  preparing  food.  On  the 
second  he  had  little  to  do,  but  he  began  to  be  very  greatly 
interested  in  a  singular  feature  of  the  wild  palm  forest.  In 
the  sunny  hours  of  the  day  this  forest  was  full  of  butterflies. 
The  air  seemed  to  bloom  with  them.  They  moved  about  in 
swarms. 

He  had  never  seen  such  beautiful  butterflies  before,  nor 
could  he  have  imagined  that  such  had  any  existence.  Their 
wings  were  of  the  most  vivid  colors ;  some  of  these  had 
metallic  lustres,  and  the  large  ones  were  to  the  atmosphere 
what  the  orchids  in  these  forests  are  to  the  trees. 

If  he  could  make  a  collection  of  these  air  flowers,  as  they 
seemed  to  be,  and  take  it  home,  what  a  souvenir  of  perilous 
adventure  it  would  be  !   what  memories  it  might  recall  ! 

The  thought  filled  him  with  delight  and  hope.  It  gave 
play  to  his  fancy  amid  the  dispiriting  situation. 

Me  began  the  work.  Hut  in  order  to  secure  the  most 
brilliant  wings,  he  now  and  then  followed  a  flock  some  dis- 
tance from  the  shore. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  day  of  butterfly  hunting  he  found 
that  he  had  secured  a  collection  of  insects  so  wonderful  in 
form  and  color  as  to  excite  the  wonder  of  any  naturalist  in 
tiie  States  to  whom  he  might  show  them. 

He  resolved  on  the  following  day,  if  he  were  left  alone,  to 
go  farther  into  the  wild  palm  forests,  and  to  add  to  the  col- 
lection the  rarest  of  these  gems  of  the  air  that  it  would  be 
possible  to  secure. 


2l8  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  hunters  did  not  return.  He  found  himself  alone  by 
the  silent  boats. 

The  morning  sun  rose  dazzling  over  the  palm  forest.  The 
great  trees  and  lianas  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream 
were  full  of  birds,  whose  cries  were  almost  deafening.  The 
howling  monkeys  united  their  cries  with  the  gay  parrots  and 
lively  trogons. 

Leigh  prepared  a  net  for  the  hunting  of  the  butterflies,  and 
set  out  in  the  fascinating  forest  of  dazzling  palms. 

New  specimens  of  butterflies  constantly  appeared,  and  he 
added  treasure  to  treasure. 

The  heat  became  intense,  and  he  sat  down  under  a  tree 
and  studied  the  wonderful  colors  and  color  lines  of  the 
captive  wings. 

He  rose  up  to  go  back  to  the  stream. 

Which  way  ? 

Every  tree  here  looked  like  every  other  tree.  His  mind 
had  been  so  filled  with  the  pursuit  of  new  wonders  of  color, 
that  he  had  lost  all  sense  of  direction,  and  knew  not  the  east 
from  the  west,  the  north  from  the  south. 

He  would  climb  a  palm.  But  all  the  palms  were  of  the 
same  height,  all  looked  exactly  alike,  there  was  nothing 
about   them   to  distinguish   one   from   another. 

Were  he  to  go  one  way,  it  might  take  him  to  the  river  or  it 
might  take  him  in  the  opposite  direction.  There  were  great 
trees  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  so  there  might  be  at 
some  other  side  of  the  shining  forest. 

lie  tried  to  find  his  own  tracks,  but  the  burning  sun  had 
withered  all  traces  of  them.  He  wandered  a  little  way  here 
and  a  little  way  there,  and  there  came  over  him  that  strange 


THE  WILD  PALM  FOREST.  2ig 

sense  of  bewilderment  that  falls  upon  one  lost  in  a  place 
where  all   objects  are  alike. 

Had  he  again  fallen  into  peril  and  trouble  ?  Young 
Aleman  had  warned  him  against  such  dangers  as  these,  and 
he  had  been  confident  that  he  would  avoid  them. 

He  would  cry  out.  But  who  was  to  hear  ?  The  wild 
palm  forest  was  silent  at  mid-day.  Only  the  hum  of  insects 
broke  the  monotony  of  the  universal  stillness.  There 
seemed  to  be  no  birds,  beasts,  or  serpents.  It  was  a  jungle 
of  butterflies. 

He  would  find  the  tracks  of  beasts  whom  he  thought 
might  go  towards  the  stream.  There  were  none.  He  would 
watch  the  flight  of  birds,  but  there  were  no  wings  in  the  air. 
All  was  a  dead  calm,  hot,  lifeless,  motionless,  save  butter- 
flies, butterflies  everywhere. 

The  beautiful  wings  now  became  a  mockery  to  him  as 
the\r  flitted  about. 

He  would  mark  the  course  of  the  sun.  But  his  mind  had 
been  so  absorbed  in  the  pursuit  of  the  flying  flocks  of  gold, 
amber,  and  rubies  that  he  knew  not  whether  the  stream  of 
the  rubber  canoes  was  now  on  the  east  or  the  west.  Every- 
thing seemed  to  mock  him.  For  him  there  were  no  points 
of  compass.  There  were  wild  palms  of  the  same  height  and 
form  tilled  with  happy  insects  everywhere. 

It  was  but  uncertainty  to  go  this  way  or  that.  On  every 
hand  was  the  same  glimmering,  dazzling  appearance  of 
everything. 

He  would  light  ;i  fire  as  in  the  cavern.  Hut  he  had  no 
matches  with  him  now. 

Night   came.      The   butterflies   vanished.      The   wild   palms 


220  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

began  to  gleam  with  fireflies.  He  knew  the  mariner's  stars 
as  they  appeared  one  by  one  ;  but  he  did  not  know  the  way 
in  which  he  should  go. 

There  was  nothing  for  him  to  do  but  sink  down  upon  the 
earth,  and  to  await  events.  He  might  watch  the  flight  of 
birds  in  the  morning,  and  it  would  be  likely  to  be  towards 
the  stream  which  led  to  the  sea. 

The  night  passed.  There  were  no  flocks  of  birds  when 
the  red  sun  appeared.  As  the  light  filled  the  trees,  butter- 
flies arose  again.  The  air  glimmered  again  with  wings. 
There  was  the  same  intense  light,  the  same  glimmering  green 
of  the  palms,  the  same  silence. 

Almost  maddened  by  the  situation,  which  looked  more 
hopeless  hourly,  there  appeared  amid  all  the  greenness  and 
brightness  the  brownish-black  wing  of  a  bird.  It  settled  on 
the  stem  of  a  palm,  and  Leigh  could  see  that  the  bird  was 
startled  to  find  a  being  like  himself  in  this  strange  place. 
The  ashy  wing,  too,  looked  strange  there.  He  had  seen 
birds  of  that  kind  before.  Where  ?  On  the  oozy,  misty 
banks  of  the  stream  where  alligators  were.  He  thought 
that  it  was  what  was  popularly  called  the  alligator  bird. 

Why  this  bird  and  the  alligator  should  be  friends  is  one 
of  nature's  mysteries.  The  thought  flashed  through  Leigh's 
mind,  "  The  bird's  course  will  be  towards  the  river.  I  will 
follow  its  wing." 

The  solitary  bird  did  not  seem  shy  or  afraid.  It  ruffled 
its  feathers  as  in  surprise.  It  did  not  rise  on  its  wing  above 
the  trees.      It  seemed  to  like  the  shade  and  low  ground. 

"Yes,"  gasped  Leigh,  "you  are  the  little  bird  of  the  la- 
goon." 


THE    ALLIGATOR    BIRD.  22  1 

He  had  hoard  it  said  that  this  bird  "picked  the  alligator's 
teeth."  This  may  have  been  a  forest  superstition.  It  was 
enough  for  Leigh  to  know  that  the  bird  hovered  about  the 
reedy  haunts  of  the  alligators,  and  that  this  one  was  a  wan- 
derer, and  would  be  certain  to  wing  its  way  towards  the  water. 

The  bird  flew  slowly  from  tree  to  tree  under  the  shade, 
a  dark  object  in  the  stream  of  shadow.  Leigh  followed  it. 
At  times  it  stopped  at  certain  spaces,  as  if  to  listen.  Then 
it  would  away  again,  but  always  seeking  the  coolest  streak 
of  shadow,  as  if  it  were  upon  a  stream. 

The  way  was  long  and  slow.  The  bird  had  been  used  to 
low  and  short  stages  of  flight.  It  suddenly  disappeared. 
Leigh  rushed  forward,  and  to  his  delight  found  himself  on 
the  banks  of  the  stream. 

He  was  sure  that  it  was  the  stream  that  he  had  left, 
although  the  boats  did  not  at  this  point  appear.  But  he 
found  an  abandoned  mahogany  dugout,  and  he  followed  the 
stream  in  this  until  he  came  to  the  place  of  the  camp. 

The  hunters  had  not  returned. 

But  they  came  back  that  night,  and  he  was  glad  indeed  to 
meet  again  old  Apula  who  had  rescued  him  from  the  cave. 

Leigh  was  now  led  to  watch  the  habits  of  the  little  ashy 
birds,  the  alligators'  friends.  He  did  see  them  alight  near  the 
great  reptiles'  mouths,  though  he  did  not  see  them  pick  the 
creatures'  teeth.  It  is  said  that  the  alligators  never  harm 
this  feathered  visitor  to  the  open  door  of  its  mouth  ;  we  hope 
it  is  true,  for  one  likes  to  find  in  everything  everywhere  some 
characteristic  that  has  the  resemblance  of  goodness.  The 
reptile,  however,  probably  finds  the  bird  in  some  way  useful 
to  him. 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 


FAITHFUL. 


LEIGH'S  heart  beat  joyfully  as  the  Indians  turned  the 
boats  to  the  lake  and  he  saw  the  volcanoes  rising  out 
of  the  lake  again. 

He  expected  that  the  Indians  would  land  him  at  some 
point  near  Rivas,  or  that  they  would  leave  him  at  Granada 
or  Greytown,  whither  he  thought  they  would  carry  the 
rubber. 

It  was  with  great'  alarm,  therefore,  that  he  found  the  Ind- 
ians drifting  to  the  San  Juan,  and  passing  Greytown  in  the 
night  as  though  they  were  hiding  their  cargo. 

They  went  out  into  the  open  sea,  and  their  boats  fol- 
lowed the   coast.     Whither   were  they  going  ? 

Leigh  tried  to  induce  Apula  to  land  him  at  Greytown.  He 
pointed  frantically  towards  the  land  and  the  disappearing 
cocoanut  palms. 

Apula  put  his  hand  on  his  heart  and  said, — 

"  Corarjou  —  vcradcro  —  sincere)  —  leal  — fiel — franco  I" 

They  were  all  Spanish  words.  Corazon  means  "  heart."  He 
wished  that  Leigh  should  understand  that  his  heart  was 
"true,"  "sincere,"  "loyal,"  "faithful,"  and  "frank."  Leigh 
believed  the  old  Indian.  But  where  were  they  going?  And 
why  in  this  mysterious  way? 

222 


FAITHFUL.  223 

"Where  do  you  sell  your  rubber?"  asked  Leigh  in  Span- 
ish. 

"No  vender,'"  said  Apula.      "No  sell."      lie  added,  "For 

the  king." 

He  then  tried  to  make  Leigh  understand  that  they  were 
going  to  the  king's  palaee,  which  was  on  the  coast. 

"The  king's  house  is  like  a  mountain,"  he  added.  "Its 
top  almost  touches  the  sky.  Great  is  the  king.  We  hunt 
for  him." 

The  party  was  on  its  way  to  some  tribal  king,  or  cacique, 
who  lived  in  a  very  high   house  in  some  place  near  the  coast. 

Leigh  understood  that  he  was  to  be  taken  there.  What 
next  was  to  happen  to  him  ? 

His  heart  beat  fast  as  the  old  Indian  said  again,  in  part 
Spanish,  — 

"  My  heart  is  true,  loyal,  and  faithful,"  and  added  :  — 

"  I  will  return  with  you  alone.  I  will  go  back  with  you  to 
Granada.  I  will  never  leave  you  until  you  are  safe  with  your 
own  people.  Xo,  no;  old  Apula  will  never  leave  this  boy 
that  he  found  in  the  cave  of  the  temple.  Apula's  heart  is 
faithful  and  true." 

In  broken  Spanish  he  said  further,  crooking  his  forefinger 
wisely  betore  his  cheeks, — 

"Calandria,  the  little  bird  all  white  and  brown,  he  know 
the  white  boy.  The  bird  with  the  whiskers,  he  know  the 
white  bow  The  bird  with  the  white  shirt,  he  know  the 
white  boy.  The  calandria,  he  come  and  talk  with  the  white 
boy  in  the  camp.      Apula  can  see." 

Leigh  believed  the  old  man.  Had  his  friends  known 
where   he   was,  he   would   have  been   happy  to   have  gone   in 


224  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

this  wild  way  to  visit  a  native  Indian  king,  and  to  have  seen 
the  king's  tall  house  in  the  native  wilderness. 

"  Why  did  you  not  leave  me  on  the  land  ?  "  he  said,  or 
tried  to  make  Apula  comprehend. 

"  We  under  orders  of  the  king  —  he  live  in  the  house  of 
the  sky,  high,  high,  high.  You  shall  see.  Apula  go  back 
to  him,  then  he  will  be  free.  Then  he  return  with  the  boy 
that  the  calandrias  come  to  visit.  Apula  will  tell  the  king 
that  the  calandrias  talked  with  the  boy  that  Apula  found  in 
the  temple,  the  temple  of  the  quetzal." 

The  last  words  spoken  in  broken  Spanish  startled  him. 
How  strange  it  was  that  he  was  hunting  for  the  quetzal,  and 
should  have  fallen  into  one  of  the  temples  of  the  sacred  bird, 
if  this  indeed  had  been  the  case! 

The  surf  thundered  on  the  coast  as  they  passed  along 
on  the  smooth  water  of  the  open  sea.  Groves  of  cocoanut 
palms  stood  everywhere  shining  in  the  sun. 

At  one  point  a  sail  boat  with  an  American  flag  lay  in  the 
distance,  at  another  a  steamer,  with  a  British  flag  appeared. 

Sharks  were  everywhere  to  be  seen  in  the  clear,  sky-blue 
water. 

On  and  on  went  the  boats.  Where  would  they  land  ? 
Would  Leigh  ever  see  his  friends  and  home  again  ?  lie 
would  sit  silent  and  brooding.  Then  old  Apula  would  re- 
peat, " vcradcro    -sinccro  —  leal — fiel." 

Leigh  believed  him.  There  was  that  in  the  old  Indian's 
heart  that  was  true  to  the  pathway  of  the  stars.  There  are 
true  hearts  to  be  found  everywhere  in  the  world. 

The  place  of  landing  Leigh  never  knew,  except  that  it 
was  on  the  Mosquito  Coast.     The  rubber  had  dried  and  be- 


THE    TALL    HOUSE.  22  5 

come  hard,  and  he  understood  that  the  king  who  dwelt  in 
the  tall  palace  was  to  sell  it  to  a  comisario,  as  the  Spanish 
rubber  traders  were  called,  and  that  rubber  was  one  of  his 
sources  of  revenue. 

They  came  to  the  palace  of  the  king.  It  was  indeed  a 
structure  unlike  anything  that  Leigh  had  ever  seen  before. 
It  looked  like  a  hill  with  an  opening  in  its  sides. 

It  was  built  of  cane  and  palm  leaves,  or  like  native  vegeta- 
tion.     It  was  large  enough  to  shelter  a  council  of  the  people. 

The  Indians  were  not  dressed  like  those  he  had  seen  else- 
where. They  wore  the  clothes  of  civilization.  The  dusky 
queen  was  particularly  ornamental  in  her  attire.  There  were 
people  of  mixed  blood  there. 

Should  Leigh  disclose  his  strange  story  here  to  any  Eng- 
lish-speaking people,  if  such  there  were  ?  No,  he  would 
trust  to  the  integrity  of  Apula  who  had  rescued  and  protected 
him. 

"  Vcnga !  "  said  Apula  to  him,  after  he  had  saluted  the 
king,  and  had  had  some  words  with  him  in  regard  to  the 
young  stranger. 

Leigh  followed  Apula,  and  they  came  to  a  palm  hut  in  the 
woods.  Here  the  Indian  lived  with  his  family,  and  here  he 
was  left  with  Apula's  daughter  and  friends,  while  the  Indian 
attended  a  meeting  of  the  tribe  in  the  council  rooms  of  the 
tall  house,  and  took  part  in  a  tribal  merry-making  there. 

In  the  morning  Leigh  was  awakened  in  his  hammock  by  a 
howling,  like  lions  in  a  menagerie.  lie  had  heard  the  puma 
called  the  American  lion,  but  he  had  never  imagined  that 
he  howled  like  this,  nor  did  he  know  that  there  were  pumas 
here. 


226  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

His  hammock  was  swung  under  some  tall  trees,  and  pres- 
ently a  powerful  roar  echoed  from  a  thicket  above  him.  He 
started  up  and  ran  into  the  hut,  awaking  the  Indian  woman 
and  her  children. 

"  Lion !  "  he  exclaimed.  He  pointed  up.  "  Lion  en 
arbol 7  (lion  on  the  tree)." 

The  people  looked  puzzled. 

Presently  there  was  heard  a  terrific  roar  above  the  cabin, 
as  of  two  or  more  lions.      Leigh  made  signs  of  alarm. 

The  roar  was  again  set  up  as  though  there  was  an  army  of 
lions  coming  down  from  the  trees  to  devour  the  whole  house- 
hold. 

"Congo  —  7/10)10,'"   said  the  woman.     "  Pequeno  !    (little)." 

Leigh  shook  his  head. 

"  No  pequeno"  he  said.      "  Lion  !  " 

The  light  was  breaking.  The  woman  went  out  and  stood 
by  the  hammock  where  Leigh  had  slept,  and  pointed  upward. 

"  Nada !  (nothing),"  said  Leigh,  meaning  that  he  saw- 
nothing  there. 

There  were  indeed  a  few  little  black  monkeys  with  gray 
faces  in  the  trees,  but  no  lions,  —  nothing  that  could  seem  so 
to  roar  as  to  shake  the  hills.  Such  roars  as  he  had  just 
heard  might  frighten  an  army. 

All  was  silent  for  a  time.  The  woman  and  children  stood 
still,  looking  up. 

The  sun  was  now  rising  in  the  clear  sky,  as  was  seen  in 
the  red  glow  in  the  tree-tops.  The  parrots  were  sending 
forth  deafening  cries.  Leigh  wondered  that  such  fearful 
noises  could  ever  proceed  from  the  throats  of  such  small 
birds. 


THE    TALL    HOUSE.  227 

Suddenly  a  roar  filled  the  place.  It  was  followed  by  a 
chorus  of  terrific  sounds,  like  the  lions  in  a  menagerie  when 
impatiently  waiting  for  their  food. 

The  woman  turned  to  Leigh,  laughing,  and  the  children 
wearing  the  like  face,  and  pointed  upward. 

It  was  indeed  the  little  black  monkeys  with  gray  faces 
that  were  roaring  like  lions. 

Leigh  would  hardly  have  believed  his  eyes  more  than  his 
ears,  had  he  not  heard  some  parrots  almost  outdo  the  little 
monkeys  in  the  strength  of  their  cries. 

" Peqiiaw,"  said  the  woman. 

" Pequcno"  said  the  children. 

" Pequcno"  assented  Leigh  in  humiliation,  and  disclosed 
in  broken  Spanish  that  he  thought  that  only  a  lion  could  ever 
send  forth  a  roar  so  terrible. 

In  the  morning  Apula  returned,  saying  in  Spanish, — 

"  Great  news  !  " 

"What  ?"  asked  Leigh,  wondering  if  in  any  way  it  related 
to  his  friends. 

"  The  king  has  received  a  message  that  a  white  boy  has 
been  lost.       /  roiga  !  " 

Leigh  followed  his  faithful  friend.  The  two  went  down 
to  the  sea  to  the  long  lines  of  cocoanut  palms,  against  which 
the  green  and  purple  sea  was  thundering  and  tossing  into 
surf.  He  found  a  boat  there  awaiting  him.  The  two  went 
out  from  a  bend  where  the  force  of  the  surf  was  broken,  and 
Leigh  felt  sure  now  that  he  was  on  his  way  to  Hluefields  or 
Greytown,  or  some  like  port.  He  could  not  know  the  geog- 
raphy of  the  place,  but  he  could  trust  his  guide. 

Who  were  those  strange  Indians  that  he  had  met? 


228  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

He  had  heard  of  the  King  of  the  Mosquito  Coast,  who 
was  protected  by  the  English  government  after  the  trend  of 
the  English-American  treaty  of  a  generation  ago.  Could  the 
king  that  he  had  met  have  been  him?  He  could  not  tell. 
He  only  knew  that  Apula  used  the  paddles  with  a  kind  of 
gladsome  vigor,  and  that  he  was  not  expected  to  be  able  to 
understand  all  of  the  scenes  that  he  had  met. 

The  place  was  the  palace  or  tall  house  of  the  Mosquito 
Indians'  king.  The  real  king,  however,  was  in  Jamaica;  the 
man  before  whom  the  Indians  had  danced  was  only  a  chief, 
or  deputy  governor. 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

FOUND ! 

'  TT^ENGA  /"  was  the  welcome  summons  of  Apula  at  last, 

'  after    Leigh's    enforced   visit  to  the    Indian  palace. 

Leigh  entered  the  boat  with  the  faithful  Indian,  and  he  was 
afloat  on  the  serene  waters  under  the  calm  skies  beyond  the 
thundering  surf. 

They  came  to  the  foaming  harbor  of  Greytown. 

As  the  boat  touched  the  strand,  Apula  rose  up,  tall  and 
thin,  — 

"  MucJiaclio  (boy),"  said  he,  "  Apula's  heart  has  been  true, 
sincere,  faithful.  Me  found  you  in  the  cave  of  the  quetzal; 
he  returns  you  to  your  own.      Remember  Apula  !  " 

The  tall  Indian  pointed  to  a  flag  in  the  town  and  said, — ■ 

"The  Consul  —  American.  Apula  is  true,  loyal,  faith- 
ful. He  wants  money  —  nada  (nothing).  You  are  going  to 
Guatemala." 

He  stood  in  the  boat,  pointing  to  the  flag. 

"  Leap  !  "   said  ho,   "  lea])  and  be  free  !  " 

He  held  the  boat  to  the  strand  with  the  paddle,  while  the 
surf  broke  and  foamed  around  it. 

Leigh  leaped  to  the  shore,  and  turned  around.  Already 
Apula  was  gone;  his  boat  was  breaking  through  the  surf 
towards  the  calm,  green  sea.     Why  had  he  gone? 

Leigh    hastened   to  the  house  of   the   Consul.      The   latter 

229 


23O  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

rose  up  as  though  a  ghost  had  appeared  when  he  saw  him 
coming. 

"  Have  you  come  out  of  the  earth  ?  "  said  the  Consul. 

"Yes,"  said  Leigh,  "I  have." 

"  Do  you  know  that  your  absence  has  alarmed  the  country, 
and  caused  me  hours  of  trouble  and  anxiety?  Do  you  know 
that  your  uncle  has  nearly  gone  mad  on  your  account,  and 
that  your  brother  has  lost  all  interest  in  everything  for  the 
same  reason  ?  Do  you  know  that  your  name  and  description 
have  been  sent  to  all  the  American  consulates  ?  Where  have 
you  been  ?  " 

"  Let  me  first  ask  you  where  now  are  my  brother  and 
uncle  ?  " 

"  They  have  gone  to  Corinto  on  the  other  side.  They 
have  been  continually  going  from  city  to  city,  from  port  to 
port,  from  place  to  place,  seeking  for  tidings  from  you.  Do 
you  know  what  a  place  you  make  in  your  friends'  hearts?" 

"  Consul,  telegraph  to  them  that  I  have  been  lost  in  the 
woods,  and  found  by  friendly  Indians  and  returned." 

"Lost?  How  could  that  have  been?  You  went  away 
from  your  guide  around  a  single  bend  in  the  river,  and  was 
gone  ;  boat  and  all  were  gone.  I  can  believe  your  guide.  I 
never  knew  him  to  deceive  any  one,  and  I  have  known  him 
long." 

"Telegraph,  and  I  will  explain  all." 

The  Consul  sent  an  immediate  message  to  Captain  Fro- 
bisher  at  Corinto,  and  then  heard  Leigh's  strange  story. 

When  he  had  concluded,  the  Consul  said, — 

"  There  is  one  man  whose  heart  is  broken." 

"Who?" 


found!  231 

"The  guide." 

"  Where  is  he  ?  " 

"At  Rivas." 

"  Send  word  to  him  that  I  have  been  found." 

"  I  am  going  to  Rivas  to-day.     You  shall  go  with  me." 

The  American  flag  on  the  Consul's  boat  came  trailing  into 
the  port  of  Rivas.  On  the  landing  stood  a  solitary  Indian 
with  straining  eyes.  • 

As  Leigh  leaped  to  the  shore,  he  found  himself  clasped  in 
the  iron  arms  of  an  Indian,  and  patted  on  the  back  after  the 
manner  of  the  country. 

"  Consul,  Consul,"  the  Indian  cried  out  in  a  frantic  tone, 
"my  words  were  true,  my  words  were  true!  I  did  not  harm 
the  boy.  I  could  die  now.  Everybody  will  know  that  my 
words  were  true  !      I  would  rather  die  than  not  be  true  !  " 

The  Indian,  a  lord  of  the  waters  that  he  was,  began  to 
tremble  and  cry.  He  leaped  about  in  the  sand.  He  stopped 
suddenly  and  asked,  — 

"  Where  did  you  go,  boy  ?  what  became  of  you,  boy?  Did 
you  go  up  to  the  sky,  or  down  into  the  earth  ?  " 

"  Down,"  said  Leigh. 

"  Down  under  the  water  ?  " 

"  Down  beside  the  water  —  down  into  a  pit." 

"  Where  was  your  boat  ?  " 

"  In  the  reeds." 

"  Why  did  you  go  into  the  reeds,  boy?  " 

"In  search  oi  the  quetzal.  There  were  quetzals  in  the 
trees  beyond  the  reeds.     The  trees  were  full  of  trogons." 

"  Did  you  fall  into  the  temple,  boy  ?  " 

"  Into  a  pit,  Senor." 


232  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"I  see,  I  see  it  all  now  —  how  strange  —  how  very 
strange  !  The  old  temples  were  there  —  caves  now.  I  see, 
I  see.     But,  hoy,  why  did  you  not  call  ?  " 

"  I  did,  but  nobody  could  hear  me  —  I  was  underground  !  " 

"  How  did  you  get  away  ?  " 

"  I  was  found  by  an  Indian  rubber  hunter." 

"  He  brought  you  back  ?  " 

"  He  brought  me  back." 

"  All  of  the  stars  be  praised  !  No  one  can  ever  suspect  me 
of  doing  you  harm  any  more." 

The  meeting  between  Leigh  and  his  uncle  was  a  revela- 
tion to  the  boy. 

"  Leigh,"  said  Captain  Frobisher,  embracing  him  as  the 
Indian  had  done,  "  if  the  sun  were  gold,  and  I  owned  it  all, 
I  would  have  given  it  for  you.  This  is  the  happiest  hour  of 
my  life." 

"  I  did  not  know  that  I  was  worth  so  much  as  that,"  said 
Leigh.  "  If  I  have  that  value,  I  will  try  to  take  better  care 
of  myself  in  the  future." 

Alonzo  met  Leigh  in  his  usual  practical  way. 

"  Well,  my  good  brother,  you  seem  to  have  had  many  ad- 
ventures, and  to  have  made  much  commotion  in  our  little 
world.  You  have  visited  the  temple  of  the  quetzal,  I  hear, 
but  where  is  the  quetzal  ?  " 

"  I  will  find  him  yet.  I  have  not  given  up  the  search.  I 
will  do  yet  what  no  other  person  ever  did.  I  will  secure  a 
royal  trogon,  and  take  him  back  to  our  Milton  home,  as  a 
companion  for  the  condor  there.     Wait  and  see  !  " 

Leigh  felt  sure  that  he  would  meet  Apula  again ;  that  the 
Indian  would  be  true  to  the  ring. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

PARTED. 

OUR  travellers  went  up  the  coast. 
At  Bluefields  Apula  had  suddenly  appeared  one  even- 
ing, and  said  to  Leigh  in  broken  language, — ■ 

"Are  you  going  to  Guatemala,  my  young  friend?" 

"Yes,  we  go  to  Livingston,  and  then  go  over  the  moun- 
tains to  Guatemala  City." 

"  The  mountains  — las  montanas  f  " 

"Yes,  Apula." 

"There  is  the  forest  of  the  quetzal,  the  true,  true  bird  — 
the  real  quetzal." 

He  turned  around  nervously  and  said, — 

"  I  follow  you  —  I  find  you  —  Ciudad  Guatemala.    When  ?  " 

Leigh  explained  to  Apula  the  plan  of  their  journey,  to 
which  the  Indian  answered  :  — 

"  I  know  the  jcfcs  of  the  towns  the  comandantcs.  I 
have  hunted  there.      The  cochineal  is  grown  there." 

The  jcfcs?  who  were  these  ?  Were  they  men,  or  animals, 
or  birds  ?      Were  they  what  the  Indian  had  hunted? 

They  were  none  ol  these.  They  were  the  local  judges, 
the  governors  ol  places,  the  mayors,  as  it  were,  ol  towns. 
They  were  like  the  judges  in  Oriental  stories  cadis,  or  the 
alcaldes  of  Spanish   towns.     The  jefc  was   the   man   of   the 

233 


234  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

place.  This  man  would  be  their  chief  advisor  on  the  inland 
ways  of  Guatemala. 

Apula  held  up  his  ring  to  the  light,  patted  Leigh  affec- 
tionately on  the  back,  after  the  custom,  and  turned  away  as 
if  reluctantly. 

What  did  he  mean  by  "  I  will  follow  you  "  ?  Why 
should  he  seek  to  follow  Leigh  ?  It  was  reputed  to  be  a  very 
hard  journey  to  Guatemala  City,  over  the  mountains,  and 
English  and  American  travellers  found  it  so,  even  those  who 
had  plenty  of  money,  as  the  Frobishers  had. 

There  are  comforts  that  are  needed  in  travelling  that 
money  cannot  buy.  The  way  was  not  only  a  very  difficult 
one,  but  a  long  one. 

The  Indian,  with  no  resources  except  his  knowledge  of  how 
to  live  in  the  country,  could  better  overcome  the  difficulties 
than  an  English  traveller  with  means.  Time  was  of  little 
account  to  him.  But  what  could  be  the  Indian's  motive  for 
desiring  to  follow  him. 

Leigh  might  believe  it  to  be  a  good  one,  a  matter  of  disin- 
terested affection.  But  Captain  Frobisher  and  Alonzo  could 
hardly  be  brought  to  believe  this. 

Leigh  saw  in  the  Indian's  face  a  resolution  that  showed 
that  he  was  in  earnest  in  what  he  had  said. 

Why  not  take  the  Indian  with  him  as  a  guide  ?  Because 
his  uncle  and  brother  would  distrust  him.  Leigh  had  made 
so  many  mistakes  already,  through  over-confidence  in  his  own 
plans,  that  he  did  not  dare  to  venture  upon  another,  or  to  sug- 
gest anything  that  on  its  face  would  excite  suspicion.  How 
could  he  know  that  Apula  was  not  a  robber. 

He   had  read  the  dark  tales  of  the  buccaneers.      He  had 


PARTED.  235 

been  told  strange  things  of  the  Mosquito  Coast  Indians.  He 
must  not  again  lead  his  friends  into  trouble.  But  he  wished 
to  kno\v,more  of  this  Indian,  who  had  said  that  he  would  find 
him  in  Guatemala  City. 

He  went  to  the  Moravian  missionary  at  Bluefields. 

"  Did  you  ever  meet  a  Mosquito  Indian  by  the  name  of 
Apula?  "  asked  he. 

"Apula?  Apula,  the  rubber  hunter?  Yes.  Has  he 
offered  himself  to  you  as  a  guide  ?" 

"No.  He  rescued  me  from  a  pit,  and  brought  me  out  of 
the  woods,  near  the  lake,  where  I  was  lost." 

'"He  is  an  honest  man." 

The  missionary  added:  — 

"  Apula  has  a  daughter.  She  is  a  very  beautiful  girl.  He 
is  very  fond  of  her  and  very  proud  of  her.  She  goes  with 
him  on  journeys,  except  when  he  goes  rubber  hunting.  She 
is  as  devoted  to  him  as  he  is  to  her.  Apula's  wife  is  dead, 
and  his  daughter,  whom  he  calls  Nina,  is  all  he  has.  He  is 
an  uncommon  Indian.  I  could  recommend  him  to  you  as  a 
guide.  He  would  be  true,  as  true  as  the  courses  of  the  stars, 
to  one  in  whom  he  believed. 

"  You  will  need  a  native  guide  in  all  your  plans  of  travel 
in  these  countries.  You  are  going  to  Guatemala.  Well,  my 
young  friend,  you  will  not  find  Guatemala  to  be  another 
Costa  Rica.  There  are  no  long  railroads  there,  amid  German 
and  Knglish  plantations.  Splendid  churches  are  there,  but 
thev  are  dead  :  lino  monoliths,  but  thev  are  sinking  into  the 
earth  of  the  forests;  no  one  knows  who  erected  them,  or  to 
whom  thc\'  were  erected.  You  will  need  a  guide.  Let  me 
advise  you  to  engage  Apula  and  his  daughter." 


236  LOST    IX    NICARAGUA. 

To  all  of  this  Leigh's  heart  responded.  But  he  had  lost 
credit,  as  a  counsellor,  in  plans  of  travel.  His  blunders 
had  cost  his  uncle  too  much  money  and  anxiety  already. 

No,  he  must  not  advise  the  securing  of  Apula  as  a  guide. 
He  must  simply  assent  to  the  plans  of  the  others,  as  the 
youngest  traveller ;  but  he  did  desire  the  old  Indian's  com- 
pany in  the  long  journey  that  he  was  about  to  take.  Would 
he  ever  see  him  acrain  ? 


CHAPTER   XXXI. 

GUATEMALA,  THE  LAND  OF  THE  QUETZAL. 

GUATEMALA  was  the  land  of  ancient  glory,  and  it 
promises  again  to  become  a  garden,  and  its  ports  are 
growing  again.  Here  luscious  oranges  grow  in  a  luxurious 
abundance,  without  any  danger  from  frost.  The  ports  of 
Guatemala  lie  only  a  few  days'  sail  from  Mobile  and  New 
Orleans.  Except  for  a  sometime  choppy  sea  the  water  is 
serene  and  beautiful.  Of  this  land  of  ancient  splendor,  and 
of  wonderful  vegetation  always,  Livingston  is  the  principal 
port. 

A  delightful  way  to  visit  this  country,  which  is  the  largest 
of  the  five  republics  that  promise  to  make  up  the  new  central 
confederation,  would  be  to  go  to  San  Erancisco,  thence  by 
steamer  to  San  Jose  in  Guatemala,  whence  there  is  a  railroad 
to  Guatemala  City,  the  magnificent.  Or,  again,  to  Panama, 
and  take  a  steamer  to  San  Jose,  and  thence  to  the  capital  by 
rail.  The  quick  way  is  to  go  to  New  Orleans,  thence  by 
boat  direct  to  Livingston. 

Livingston  is  a  town  of  warehouses  and  huts;  a  store- 
house of  tropical  fruits,  whence  one  may  take  a  steamer  for 
the  Rio  Dulce  the  sweet  river.  Sweet  river  it  is.  One 
starts  through  a  flower  garden  of  waters,  and  sails  through  a 

237 


23o  LOST  IN    NICARAGUA. 

canon  some  ten  miles  long.  Was  there  ever  a  canon  like 
this?  We  see  the  canons  of  the  West;  they  rise  barren  and 
bare,  and  overwhelm  us  with  the  grandeur  of  their  gloom. 

But  here  there  are  walls  of  flower  gardens.  Would  you 
behold  the  hanging  gardens  of  Babylon  with  flowers  that  the 
Median  mountains  never  knew  ;  they  are  here. 

Not  cascades  but  vegetation  pours  over  the  walls,  and 
spreads  its  carpets  of  bloom  down  to  the  sweet  waters. 

What  flowers  are  here  ?  One  does  not  know.  Go  ask  the 
botanist.  What  tangles  of  berries,  what  marvels  of  leaves, 
who  can  tell  ? 

The  green  walls  look  like  the  ruins  of  castles,  and  the 
river  winds  and  turns  among  them,  turns  and  winds  again. 

Here  and  there  a  vine-colored  arabesque  of  limestone 
looks  out  amid  the  bloom  —  a  seeming  gargoyle,  as  from  the 
broken  walls  of  a  mediaeval  cathedral,  in  some  gone-by 
province  of  the  times  of  the   Palmers. 

In  and  out.  When  will  the  narrow  vistas  break,  and  the 
mountain  fields  appear ! 

The  veil  is  lifted  ;  the  river  broadens  into  a  gulf,  and  the 
gulf  is  a  garden  of  islands,  and  the  islands  are  abloom  like 
the  walls  of  the  canon. 

The  mountains  rise  and  fill  the  air;  great  arms  of  the 
Andes,  which  have  only  gone  down  at  Panama  to  rise  again. 
Everything  is  vegetation,  —  the  shores,  the  islands,  the  moun- 
tains. The  earth  here  all  turns  into  palms  and  balms  and 
blooms. 

We  are  next  in  Lake  Isabel,  whose  shores  were  once 
famous  for  pottery.  But  amid  these  splendors,  growing  and 
glowing,  inviting  the  highest  development  of  social  life  and 


GUATEMALA,    THE    LAND    OF    THE    QUETZAL.  239 

progress,  what  a  scant  and  wretched  population  lined  these 
shores.  The  town  of  Isabel  had  only  one  public  house,  and 
that  was  built  of  mud.  The  houses  here  were  huts ;  the 
people  followed  the  simple  instincts  of  their  animal  nature  ; 
they  seemed  to  care  for  nothing"  more.  They  played  the 
iiarimba,  an  instrument  of  sweet-sounding  sticks,  they  danced, 
then  idled.  Time  with  them  came  and  went ;  they  were 
sorry  to  see  it  go,  and  that  was  all. 

The  sun  came  up  day  by  day  to  serve  them,  to  clothe  them, 
to  make  the  shade  a  joy,  and  to  provide  them  with  food. 
What  did  they  want  more  ? 

Through  a  narrow  stream  called  the  Polochic  our  travellers 
entered  the  wilds  of  the  mountain-shadowed  world.  The 
river  wound  through  swamps  now  and  woods  of  monkeys, 
baboons,  and  parrots. 

The  monkeys  came  to  look  at  them,  the  baboons  to  gibber 
at  them,  and  the  parrots  to  ask  many  questions  in  an  un- 
known tongue. 

In  the  midst  of  111 i s  tangled  land,  where  the  inhabitants  of 
the  woods  came  out  on  the  branches  to  view  the  wonder  of 
the  steamboat,  the  steam  whistle  blew.  Erupit !  cvasit,  the 
monkeys  were  gone  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  without  any 
adios.  The  parrots  had  no  more  questions  to  ask.  They 
knew  it  all  now,  whatever  their  wonder  might  have  been. 

"Toot  !   toot  !  " 

Kven  the  little  naked  children  ran  to  their  mothers  to 
inquire  what  kind  oi  men  were  those  who  could  thus  cause 
the  monster  to  utter  such  an  unexpected  cry. 

The  river  curved  and  wound  about  hither  and  thither. 
The)-  seemed   going  about   hither  and  there,  and   making  no 


24O  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

progress.  "  Toot !  toot !  "  The  canoemen  held  their  paddles 
to  wonder. 

They  were  on  the  verge  of  the  great  mahogany  forests. 
The  trunks  of  ancient  trees  were  flower  gardens.  The  wild 
orange  was  here,  the  orchid,  the  mighty  ceiba,  putting  out 
its  giant  arms  to  the  light. 

It  was  bird-land  here,  a  bird  aristocracy  was  here. 

"Mere,"  said  Captain  Frobisher,  "black  crane  and  the 
white  crane  ;  here  is  the  quaca,  whose  breast  flames  ;  here 
humming-birds  hang  in  the  flowers. 

"  Parrots,  —  look  at  them  —  colonies  of  them  !  all  asking 
questions  about  the  things  that  they  do  not  know.  Does 
the  royal  quetzal  live  here  ?"  he  asked  of  the  pilot. 

"  Farther  up,"  said  the  pilot. 

Alligators  were  everywhere  to  be  seen  enjoying  the  sun. 
Hideous  were  they  ?  Yes,  but  lovely  in  comparison  with  the 
iguanas  which  were  clothed  in  scales,  and  had  an  ugly-look- 
ing pouch  under  their  throats,  with  long  snake-like  tails,  and 
spines  like  a  saw  upon  their  backs.  Some  of  them  were  five 
feet  long. 

"I  declare,"  said  Captain  Frobisher  to  the  pilot,  "those 
iguanas  are  the  ugliest  looking  reptiles  I  ever  saw.  They 
look  as  though  they  would  kill  you,  saw  you  up,  and  put  you 
in  their  pouches." 

"They  be  very  tender,  very  goot,"  said  the  pilot.  "They 
haf  no  offence." 

"  What  do  you  mean,  that  they  are  gentle  and  harm- 
less?" 

"  Yes,  all  that,  Captain.  And  they  are  tender  to  eat,  also, 
and  very  goot." 


GUATEMALA,  THE  LAND  OF  THE  QUETZAL.      24 1 

"They  do  not  look  as  though  the)'  had  such  double  quali- 
ties as  those,"  said  the  captain. 

The  Indians  here  had  the  forbidding  looks  and  amiable 
qualities  of  the  gentle  iguana. 

"Where  are  you  travelling  to  ?  "  asked  the  pilot  of  Captain 
Frobisher. 

"To  see  a  coffee  plantation  in  the  interior,"  said  the 
captain. 

"  It  is  a  safe  journey  that  you  will  haf,"  said  the  pilot. 
"The   Indians  are  all  honest  and  true  here." 

So  it  was.  The  Indians  are  gentle  and  faithful,  and  they 
bend  their  backs  like  beasts  of  burden  and  carry  the  travel- 
lers' baggage  in  wooden  cages  strapped  upon  their  shoulders. 

They  carry  the  coffee  in  this  way  from  the  plantations  to 
the  sea,  and  none  of  it  is  ever  stolen,  and  nothing  entrusted 
to  them  is  ever  lost. 

A  man  here  gets  about  a  shilling  a  day  for  carrying  a  hun- 
dred pounds  at  a  rapid  pace  upon  his  back.  Truly,  truly, 
these  people  need  kindergarten  schools. 


CHAPTER   XXXII. 

THE    TRICK    MULE  —  EARTHQUAKE    LAND. 

GUATEMALA  once  included  the  whole  of  Central 
America,  but  the  historic  part  of  this  New  England 
of  Spain  was  the  country  now  lying  on  the  Mexican  border. 
Here  flourished  and  passed  away  a  form  of  civilization  like 
that  of  the  Incarial  empire  of  Peru,  and  at  about  the  same 
period.  The  Spanish  empire  followed.  The  mysterious 
period  of  the  Aztecs  and  Quiches  left  the  ruins  of  pyramids 
and  temples  in  this  part  of  the  peninsula ;  and  the  Spanish 
rule,  magnificent  churches  tumbling  into  decay.  What  is  to 
follow  ?  In  pagan  times  and  in  Christian  eras  it  has  been 
faith  that  has  toiled.  There  must  be  a  revival  of  faith  to 
make  a  third  era  of  development  here;  ignorance  is  every- 
where.    The  great  period  of  education  is  yet  to  come. 

But  the  land  is  one  fair  garden  of  many  climates.  Here 
are  the  most  beautiful  flowers  in  the  world.  The  air  is 
a  marvellous  tree  garden  filled  with  bird  and  insect  life. 

The  traveller  Stephens  has  excited  the  imagination  of  the 
world  by  his  description  of  the  ancient  city  of  Utatlan,  the 
seat  of  the  Quiche  kings. 

It  was  Leigh's  desire  to  visit  this  city,  and  the  comman- 
dante  offered  mule  boys,  mules,  and  a  guide.  Captain  Fro- 
bisher  became  interested  to  visit  this  ruin. 

242 


THE    TRICK     MULE.  243 

The  way  was  over  the  mountains,  and  was  lined  with  dark 
forests  that  changed  color  as  new  variations  of  climate 
brought  forth  new  flowers. 

There  were  little  villages  and  puestos  along  the  way,  with 
long  names  ending  in  "  ango  "  and  "  ult,"  with  fountains  and 
eucalyptus  trees  in  some  of  them.  Orange  trees  were  every- 
where ;  sweet  lemons  and  citrons  were  to  be  found.  Here 
sapotes  grew  as  large  as  apples,  and  some  as  large  as  cocoa- 
nuts.  The  tiles  of  the  roofs  of  houses  were  buried  in  the 
flowers  and  foliage  of  creeping  vines.  Pinks,  lilies,  gladioli, 
sunflowers,  made  happy  families,  and  cacti  were  everywhere, 
even  on  the  trees,  and  maguey  plants  were  used  for  fences. 

Leigh  had  been  given  a  mule  which  had  bright  trappings, 
but  a  head  of  its  own.  It  looked  as  meek  as  Moses  at 
starting,  but  had  a  habit  of  zigzagging  in  such  a  way  as  to 
bring  the  rider's  feet  against  the  trees. 

In  one  of  the  ascents  on  a  mountain  side,  Leigh  came  to 
some  old  orange  trees  loaded  with  fruit,  and  hung  with  fan- 
tastic orchids.  He  drew  the  rein  to  gather  some  of  the 
oranges,  when  the  mule  went  down  all  in  a  heap,  leaving  him 
standing  over  her,  as  he  quickly  drew  his  feet  from  the 
stirrups. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  the  mule  ?  "  asked  Captain  Fro- 
bisher  of  the  guide.      "  Is  she  going  to  die  ?  " 

"  .VeT,  «rf,"  said  the  guide,  "  she  be  a  trick  mule.  Step 
away  from  her  a  minute." 

Leigh  obeyed.  The  arriero  gathered  up  a  long  cord 
attached  to  the  saddle,  and  began  to  strap  her  with  it,  utter- 
ing some  words  of  hard  letters  that  sounded  profane. 

The  little  animal  came  to  her  feet. 


244  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  Look  out  for  your  legs  if  she  serves  you  again  like  that," 
said  the  guide. 

"  What  is  it  that  ails  her  ?  "  asked  Leigh.  "  I  have  handled 
her  gently." 

"  Handled  her  gently  !  "  said  the  arriero.  "  It  is  the  diablo 
in  her,  the  diablo  in  her  head  that  makes  her  knees  go  down. 
I  can  see  it  in  her  eyes  now.      Gar-r-r!" 

Leigh  had  never  heard  of  that  disease  before.  He  would 
look  for  the  word  in  the  Spanish  dictionary  on  his  return. 

They  came  to  a  roadside  puesto,  and  asked  for  hospitality 
for  the  night. 

The  Indians  there  were  full  of  kindness,  and  took  charge 
of  the  mules  ;  but  one  of  them  going  behind  the  trick  mule 
found  that  quality  in  them  that  some  people  call  principle. 
He  did  not  use  a  word  with  many  r's ;  he  was  a  pious 
Indian,  and  rubbed  his  bruised  leg  and  crossed  himself. 

"  That  is  a  vicious  beast,"  said  the  captain. 

"  Can  we  have  beds  ?  "  he  asked. 

He  found  that  they  might  have  a  mahogany  bedstead  if 
they  would  use  a  board,  lint  hammocks  were  offered  them. 
After  a  supper  of  Juicvos  (eggs)  and  more  coffee  la  superba, 
they  trusted  themselves  to  the  care  of  the  natives. 

"These  people  cross  themselves  at  every  sign  of  evil,"  said 
the  captain,  "and  I  feel  safe.  I  am  so  tired  that  I  am  sure 
of  good  rest  to-night.      Every  bone  in  me  is  praying  for  rest." 

"  I  never  felt  more  sure  of  sleeping  in  all  my  life  than 
now,"  said  Alonzo. 

"  I  would  wager  a  peso  that  I  will  be  asleep  before  my 
hammock  gains  its  poise,"  said  Leigh. 

The  three  stood  before  their  hammocks. 


EARTHQUAKE    LAND.  245 

"  Well,  it  is  a  blessing  to  be  sure  of  something  in  this 
uncertain  world,"  said  the  captain. 

"Well,  I  am  sure  of  sleep  to-night  and  right  off  now,"  said 
Alonzo. 

"And  I  am  sure  of  sleep  after  two  winks,"  said  Leigh. 

The  three  travellers  were  just  swinging  into  the  hammocks 
when  their  feet  trembled. 

A  fearful  shriek  rent  the  air.  It  came  from  an  Indian 
woman.  The  Indian  men  were  running  out  of  the  patio  into 
the  fields. 

"  The  house  is  shaking,"  said  the  captain. 

"The  tiles  are  breaking  up,"  said  Leigh. 

"The  earth  is  moving  away,"  said  Alonzo. 

"  I  feel  as  though  I  were  at  sea,"  said  Leigh.  "Why  are 
the  Indians  running?     I  feel  so  strangely." 

A  hollow  sound  followed,  as  though  there  was  a  tempest  in 
the  earth. 

"Tcrrcmoto  /  "  cried  an  Indian,  running  past  the  door,  and 
falling. 

Our  travellers  rushed  out.  The  building  was  staggering, 
and  the  adobe  was  falling  down. 

The  Indians  were  crossing  themselves  in  the  fields,  and 
crying,  "Tcrrcmoto,  Tcrrcmoto  /" 

The  walls  of  the  posada,  if  so  the  puesto  might  be  called, 
fell  in,  the  sight  of  which  sent  the  Indians  upon  their  knees. 

"We  will  never  sleep  in  that  house,"  said  the  captain. 
"  We  were  too  sure  for  once.      Hut  we  are  safe  here." 

Night  was  tailing.  There  was  a  deep  silence  everywhere. 
Birds  were  (lying  about  without  uttering  a  cry,  and  sinking 
upon  the  ground  with  quivering  winirs. 


246  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  world  seemed  to  darken  at  once.  Suddenly,  in  the 
far  distance,  rose  a  column  of  fire,  like  a  pillar  of  the  sky, 
and  the  earth  trembled  again. 

"Where  are  we?"  asked  Leigh. 

"  In  earthquake  land,"  said  Captain  Frobisher.  "  But  we 
are  safe  now." 

"  It  is  over,"  said  one  of  the  Indians.  "  We  will  have  to 
sleep  in  the  fields  to-night,  Senor." 

The  three  travellers  lay  down  in  the  fields,  but  not  to 
sleep.  The  moon  came  up  with  a  coppery  hue,  and  a  strange 
odor  filled  the  air. 

They  watched  the  column  of  fire  as  it  burst  from  some  far 
volcano.  It  fell  before  morning,  but  as  tired  as  they  were 
they  could  not  sleep. 

On  the  morrow  they  set  out  again  for  the  ruined  city. 

The  walls  of  many  of  the  houses  which  they  passed  by 
were  broken.  But  the  morning  was  full  of  freshness  and 
splendor,  and  the  Indians  seemed  happy  that  the  earth  had 
been  merciful  in  sparing  their  lives.  One  would  not  like  to 
build  in  earthquake  land. 


CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

THE    MYSTERY    OF    PALENQUE    AND    THE    UNKNOWN    CITIES. 

NEARLY  fifty  years  ago,  John  Lloyd  Stephens  published 
a  work  entitled  "  Incidents  of  Travel  in  Central  Amer- 
ica, Chiapas,  and  Yucatan."  It  was  illustrated  by  Frederick 
Catherwood,  and  became  a  classic.  It  gave  a  pen  and  pict- 
ure view  of  the  ruins  of  Central  America  which  excited  the 
wonder  of  the  world. 

His  accounts  of  Quiche  and  of  Palenque  may  be  regarded 
as  among  two  of  the  most  marvellous  chapters  in  the  litera- 
ture of  travel.  The  readers  will  wish  to  know  something 
about  the  lost  city  of  Palenque,  in  Yucatan. 

In  1750  a  party  of  Spanish  travellers,  probably  seeking 
for  some  new  LI  Dorado,  entered  the  province  of  Chiapas. 
They  came  to  a  vast  solitude,  and  saw  that  it  was  the  remains 
of  an  ancient  city,  as  vast  as  the  greatest  cities  of  the  world 
had  been,  and  whose  arts  must  have  recalled  Egypt.  The 
ruins,  according  to  their  account,  were  some  twenty-four 
miles  in  extent.  They  were  afterwards  reported  to  cover  an 
area  of  some  sixty  miles,  and  to  be  larger  than  London, — 
a  claim  that  Mr.  Stephens  discredits.  The  city  has  been 
overgrown  with  a  thick  and  almost  impenetrable  forest,  so 
that  its  extent  cannot  now  be  known.  Mr.  Stephens  assigns 
to  it  an  area  of  only  twenty-five  or  thirty  acres. 

•'•17 


248  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

A  part  of  the  ancient  palace  and  the  images  of  unknown 
heroes,  called  "idols,"  have  survived  the  wreck  of  the  once 
populous  streets  and  houses.  The  palace  with  the  stuccoed 
figures  on  the  pilasters  had  not  only  been  magnificent,  but 
furnished  an  example  of  art  such  as  had  not  been  found 
before  in  the  Western  world.  The  golden  temples  of  Peru 
displayed  no  such  development  of  the  sense  of  beauty  as  the 
ruins  of  Palenque. 

The  glory  of  this  vast  city  rose  and  passed,  before  the 
Eastern  world  had  ever  heard  of  the  continent.  The  country 
here  was  as  populous  as  the  land  of  the  pyramids  on  the 
Nile. 

The  records  of  kings,  heroes,  and  imaginary  gods,  if  such 
they  are,  make  the  ruin  a  vast  graveyard,  which  even  the 
Indians  shun  with  superstitious  awe.  The  few  travellers 
who  go  there,  drive  the  birds  and  beasts  away  from  the  pal- 
aces of  splendid  monarchs,  who  may  have  thought  that  the 
sun  was  created  and  rose  and  set  for  them,  and  whose  armies 
dominated  one  of  the  fairest  regions  on  earth. 

The  story  of  the  ruined  city  of  wonderful  art  and  civiliza- 
tion grew,  and  excited  the  attention  of  the  antiquarians  of 
the  world.  In  1786  the  King  of  Spain  ordered  an  explora- 
tion of  the  flowery  land  of  desolation  and  mystery,  and  in 
1787  the  explorers,  under  a  commission  from  the  government 
of  Guatemala,  went  to  Palenque. 

The  explorers  may  have  been  affected  by  their  imagina- 
tions, for  in  the  report  of  Captain  Del  Rio,  the  commander, 
an  Egyptian  origin  was  claimed  for  the  ancient  people,  —  a 
view  very  stimulating  to  the  antiquarian.  Poetic  minds  have 
shown    how  there  was   once   a  continent   called   "Atlantis,'' 


THE  MYSTERY  OF  PALENQUE.  249 

which  communicated  with  the  Nile  regions,  over  which  these 
people  came  ;  also  how  the  same  people  were  a  lost  tribe  of 
Israelites,  who  brought  with  them  the  arts  of  Egypt. 

Think  of  it  —  whether  this  city  was  once  as  great  as  the 
early  explorers  believed  it  to  be,  or  as  restricted  as  it  is 
described  by  Mr.  Stephens,  it  would  have  held  rank,  had  it 
been  in  Asia,  with  the  great  cities  of  the  world.  Its  art 
would  have  held  a  place  among  the  wonders  of  the  ages. 
Yet  we  know  not  so  much  as  its  name. 

Its  kings  and  heroes  rise  in  stone  monuments  before  us, 
with  their  eternal  records  wrapped,  as  it  were,  around  them 
—  yet  who  were  they?  They  dreamed  themselves  immortal, 
but  none  can  read  the  language  that  relates  their  deeds. 
Will  the  names  of  Homer,  Shakespeare,  and  Newton  some 
day  perish?  Is  oblivion  only  a  matter  of  time?  —  answer, 
O  pyramids  of  Palenque,  Oxmal,  Quiche,  and  Copan ! 

Our  travellers  could  not  expect  to  visit  Palenque  nor 
Quiche.  But  they  studied  these  cities  in  Stephens'  work, 
with  the  wonderful  Catherwood  illustrations,  and  they  hoped 
to  see  Copan,  which  was  on  the  highway  to  Guatemala 
City  and   near  the   Atl".;/dc  coast. 

The  description  of  Quiche  in  Stephens'  work  filled  them 
with  this  desire  to  see  with  their  own  eyes  some  of  the  fallen 
monuments  with  which  the  tropical  forests  of  Guatemala 
abound.  They  did  not  expect  to  find  the  ruins  of  splendid 
Christian  churches  here:  no  traveller  does;  but  every  ex- 
plorer is  astonished,  whatever  he  may  have  been  told,  to 
meet  with  crumbling  structures  oi  the  cross,  not  two  cen- 
turies old.  The  monkeys  tenant  them,  the  parrots,  the  bats. 
Two  civilizations  have  arisen,  shone,  and  gone  down  in  these 


250  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

vast  gardens  of  nature's  wonder-world.  The  third  high 
civilization  must  take  the  form  of  Christian  education  :  that 
education  in  which  Christ  is  the  great  teacher ;  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount  the  text-book,  and  Froebel  the  interpreter  to 
the  present  age.  Such  education  must  come  to  all  the  coun- 
tries of  the  South  as  an  undenominational  missionary  move- 
ment, as  a  force  of  evangelical  faith  ;  spiritual  education  will 
soon  be  the  new  missionary  event  of  the  world. 

Quiche  ?  What  of  the  wonder  ?  How  may  we  rebuild 
it  in  our  fancy  ?  How  see  it  alive,  with  its  altars  flaming, 
its  temples  glowing,  the  processions  of  the  kings  filling 
the  streets  with  music,  amid  the  glitter  of  gold  and  gems  ? 
Quiche  was  the  city  of  the  quetzal,  the  sacred  bird  ;  what  is 
now  left  of  the  temples  and  palaces,  where  the  bird,  more 
beautiful  than  the  peacock,  once  recalled  how  beautiful 
nature  in  her  highest  expression  could  be? 

Stephens  thus  describes  some  of  the  scenes  that  he  saw  in 
the  ruins  of  this  habitation  of  splendor,  art,  and  beauty,  where 
the  sculptors  were  the  poets  of  the  race,  where  the  poems 
yet  live  in  stone,  but  which  no  human  being  may  read  :  — 

"At  half-past  three,  witli  an  alguazil  running  before  us 
and  Bobon  trotting  behind,  we  set  out  again,  and  crossed  a 
gently  rolling  plain,  with  a  distant  side-hill  on  the  left,  hand- 
somely wooded,  and  reminding  us  of  scenes  at  home,  except 
that  on  the  left  was  another  immense  barranca,  with  large 
trees  whose  tops  were  2000  feet  below  us.  Leaving  a  vil- 
lage on  the  right,  we  passed  a  small  lake,  crossed  a  ravine, 
and  rose  to  the  plain  of  Quiche.  At  a  distance  on  the  left 
were  the  ruins  of  the  old  city,  the  once  large  and  opulent 
capital  of   Utatlan,  the  court  of  the   native  kings  of   Quiche, 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    PALEXQUE.  25  I 

and  the  most  sumptuous  discovered  by  the  Spaniards  in  this 
part  of  America.  It  was  a  site  worthy  to  be  the  abode  of  a 
race  of  kings.  We  passed  between  two  small  lakes,  rode 
into  the  village,  passed  on,  as  usual,  to  the  convent,  which 
stood  beside  the  church,  and  stopped  at  the  foot  of  a  high 
flight  of  stone  steps.  An  old  Indian  on  the  platform  told  us 
to  walk  in,  and  we  spurred  our  mules  up  the  steps,  rode 
through  the  corridor  into  a  large  apartment,  and  sent  the 
mules  down  another  flight  of  steps  into  a  yard  enclosed  by  a 
high  stone  fence.  The  convent  was  the  first  erected  in  the 
country  by  the  Dominican  friars,  and  dated  from  the  time  of 
Alvarado.  It  was  built  entirely  of  stone,  with  massive  walls 
and  corridors,  pavements,  and  courtyard  strong  enough  for  a 
fortress  ;  but  most  of  the  apartments  were  desolate  or  filled 
with  rubbish  ;  one  was  used  for  sacate,  another  for  corn,  and 
another  fitted  up  as  a  roosting  place  for  fowls.  The  padre 
had  gone  to  another  village,  his  own  apartments  were  locked, 
and  we  were  shown  into  one  adjoining,  about  thirty  feet 
square,  and  nearly  as  high,  with  stone  floor  and  walls,  and 
without  a  single  article  in  it  except  a  shattered  and  weather- 
beaten  soldier  in  one  corner,  returning  from  campaigns  in 
Mexico.  As  we  had  brought  with  us  nothing  but  our 
ponchas,  and  the  nights  in  that  region  were  very  cold,  we 
were  unwilling  to  risk  sleeping  on  the  stone  floor,  and  with 
the  padre's  Indian  servant  went  to  the  alcalde,  who,  on  the 
strength  ot  Carrcra's  passport,  gave  us  the  audience-room  of 
the  cabildo,  which  had  at  one  end  a  raised  platform  with  a 
railing,  a  table,  and  two  long  benches  with  high  backs. 
Adjoining  was  the  prison,  being  merely  an  enclosure  of  four 
high  stone  walls,  without  any  roof,  and  filled  with   more  than 


252  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

the  usual  number  of  criminals,  some  of  whom,  as  we  looked 
through  the  gratings,  we  saw  lying  on  the  ground  with  only 
a  few  rags  of  covering,  shivering  in  the  cold.  The  alcalde 
provided  us  with  supper,  and  promised  to  procure  us  a  guide 
to  the  ruins. 

"  Early  in  the  morning,  with  a  Mestitzo  armed  with  a  long, 
basket-hilted  sword,  who  advised  us  to  carry  our  weapons,  as 
the  people  were  not  to  be  trusted,  we  set  out  for  the  ruins. 
At  a  short  distance  we  passed  another  immense  barranca, 
down  which,  but  a  few  nights  before,  an  Indian,  chased  by 
alguazils,  either  fell  or  threw  himself  off  into  the  abyss, 
1400  feet  deep,  and  was  dashed  to  pieces.  At  about  a  mile 
from  the  village  we  came  to  a  range  of  elevations,  extending 
to  a  great  distance,  and  connected  by  a  ditch,  which  had 
evidently  formed  the  line  of  fortifications  of  the  ruined  city. 
They  consisted  of  the  remains  of  stone  buildings,  probably 
towers,  the  stones  well  cut  and  laid  together,  and  the  mass  of 
rubbish  around  abounded  in  flint  arrowheads.  Within  this 
line  was  an  elevation,  which  grew  more  imposing  as  we  ap- 
proached, square,  with  terraces,  and  having  in  the  centre  a 
tower,  in  all  120  feet  high.  We  ascended  by  steps  to  three 
ranges  of  terrace,  and  on  the  top  entered  an  area  enclosed 
by  stone  walls,  and  covered  with  hard  cement,  in  many 
places  still  perfect.  Thence  we  ascended  by  stone  steps  to 
the  top  of  the  tower,  the  whole  of  which  was  formerly 
covered  with  stucco,  and  stood  as  a  fortress  at  the  entrance 
of  the  great  city  of  Utatlan,  the  capital  of  the  kingdom  of 
the  Quiche  Indians. 

"According  to  Fuentes,  the  chronicler  of  the  kingdom  of 
Guatemala,   the    kings  of    Quiche    and    Kachiquel    were   de- 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    PALENQUE.  253 

scended  from  the  Toltecan  Indians,  who,  when  they  came 
into  this  country,  found  it  already  inhabited  by  people  of 
different  nations.  According  to  the  manuscript  of  Don  Juan 
Torres,  the  grandson  of  the  last  King  of  the  Quiches,  which 
was  in  the  possession  of  the  lieutenant-general  appointed  by 
Pedro  de  Alvarado,  and  which  Fuentes  says  he  obtained  by 
means  of  Father  Francis  Vasques,  the  historian  of  the  order 
of  San  Francis,  the  Toltecas  themselves  descended  from  the 
house  of  Israel,  who  were  released  by  Moses  from  the  tyr- 
anny of  Pharaoh,  and  after  crossing  the  Red  Sea  fell  into 
idolatry.  To  avoid  the  reproofs  of  Moses,  or  from  fear  of  his 
inflicting  upon  them  some  chastisement,  they  separated  from 
him  and  his  brethren,  and  under  the  guidance  of  Tanub,  their 
chief,  passed  from  one  continent  to  the  other,  to  a  place 
which  they  called  the  seven  caverns,  a  part  of  the  kingdom 
of  Mexico,  where  they  founded  the  celebrated  city  of  Tula. 
From  Tanub  sprang  the  families  of  the  kings  of  Tula  and 
Quiche,  and  the  first  monarch  of  the  Toltecas.  Nimaquiche, 
the  fifth  king  of  that  line,  and  more  beloved  than  any  of  his 
predecessors,  was  directed  by  the  oracle  to  leave  Tula,  with 
his  people,  who  had  by  this  time  multiplied  greatly,  and  con- 
duct them  from  the  kingdom  of  Mexico  to  that  of  Guatemala. 
In  performing  this  journey,  they  consumed  many  years,  suf- 
fered extraordinary  hardships,  and  wandered  over  an  immense 
tract  of  country,  until  they  discovered  the  Lake  of  Atitlan, 
and  resolved  to  settle  near  it  in  a  country  which  they  called 
Quiche. 

"  Nimaquiche  was  accompanied  by  three  brothers,  and  it 
was  agreed  to  divide  the  new  country  between  them.  Nima- 
quiche died  ;   his  son  Axcopil  became  the  chief  of  the  Quiches, 


254  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Kachiquels,  and  Zutugiles,  and  was  at  the  head  of  his  nation 
when  they  settled  in  Quiche,  and  the  first  monarch  who 
reigned  in  Utatlan.  Under  him  the  monarchy  rose  to  a  high 
degree  of  splendor.  To  relieve  himself  from  some  of  the 
fatigues  of  administration,  he  appointed  thirteen  captains,  or 
governors,  and  at  a  very  advanced  age  divided  his  empire 
into  three  kingdoms,  viz.,  the  Quiche,  the  Kachiquel,  and  the 
Zutugil,  retaining  the  first  for  himself,  and  giving  the  second 
to  his  eldest  son,  Jintemal,  and  the  third  to  his  youngest  son, 
Acxigual.  This  division  was  made  on  a  day  when  three  suns 
were  visible  at  the  same  time,  which  extraordinary  circum- 
stance, says  the  manuscript,  has  induced  some  persons  to 
believe  that  it  was  made  on  the  day  of  our  Savior's  birth. 
There  were  seventeen  Toltecan  kings  who  reigned  in  Utatlan, 
the  capital  of  Quiche,  whose  names  have  come  down  to  pos- 
terity ;  but  they  are  so  hard  to  write  out  that  I  will  take  it  for 
granted  the  reader  is  familiar  with  them. 

"As  we  stood  on  the  ruined  fortress  of  Resguardo,  the 
great  plain,  consecrated  by  the  last  struggle  of  a  great  peo- 
ple, lay  before  us  grand  and  beautiful,  its  blood  stains  all 
washed  out,  and  smiling  with  fertility,  but  perfectly  desolate. 
Our  guide  leaning  on  his  sword  in  the  area  was  the  only  per- 
son in  sight.  But  very  soon  Bobon  introduced  a  stranger, 
who  came  stumbling  along  under  a  red  silk  umbrella,  talking 
to  Bobon,  and  looking  up  at  us.  We  recognized  him  as  the 
cura,  and  descended  to  meet  him.  He  laughed  to  see  us  grope 
our  way  down.  By  degrees  his  laugh  became  infectious,  and 
when  we  met  we  all  laughed  together.  All  at  once  he  stopped, 
looked  very  solemn,  pulled  off  his  neck  cloth  and  wiped  the 
perspiration  from  his  face,  took  out  a  paper  of  cigars,  laughed, 


THE  MYSTERY  OF  PALENQUE.  255 

thrust  them  back,  pulled  out  another,  as  he  said,  of  Habane- 
ras, and  asked  what  was  the  news  from  Spain. 

"The  whole  area  was  once  occupied  by  the  palace,  semi- 
nary, and  other  buildings  of  the  royal  house  of  Quiche, 
which  now  lie  for  the  most  part  in  confused  and  shapeless 
masses  of  ruins.  The  palace,  as  the  cura  told  us,  with  its 
courts  and  corridors,  once  covering  the  whole  diameter,  is 
completely  destroyed,  and  the  materials  have  been  carried 
away  to  build  the  present  village.  In  part,  however,  the 
floor  remains  entire,  with  fragments  of  the  partition  walls, 
so  that  the  plan  of  the  apartments  can  be  distinctly  made 
out.  This  floor  is  of  a  hard  cement,  which,  though  vear 
alter  year  washed  by  the  floods  of  the  rainy  season,  is  hard 
and  durable  as  stone.  The  inner  walls  were  covered  with 
plaster  of  a  finer  description,  and  in  corners  where  there  had 
been  less  exposure  were  the  remains  of  colors :  no  doubt 
the  whole  interior  had  been  ornamented  with  paintings.  It 
gave  a  strange  sensation  to  walk  the  floor  of  that  roofless 
palace,  and  think  of  that  king  who  had  left  it  at  the  head 
of  70,000  men  to  repel  the  invaders  of  his  empire.  Corn 
was  now  growing  among  the  ruins.  The  ground  was  used 
by  an  Indian  family,  which  claimed  to  be  descended  from  the 
royal  house.  In  one  place  was  a  desolate  hut,  occupied  by 
them  at  the  time  of  planting  and  gathering  the  corn.  Ad- 
joining the  palace  was  a  large  plaza,  or  courtyard,  also 
covered  with  cement,  in  the  centre  of  which  were  the  relics 
dt  a  fountain. 

"The  most  important  part  remaining  of  these  ruins  is  that 
which  is  called  Kl  Sacriticatorio,  or  the  place  of  sacrifice.  It  is 
a  quadrangular  stone  structure,  sixty-six  teet  on  each  side  at 


256  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

its  base,  and  rising  in  pyramidal  form  to  the  height,  in  its  pres- 
ent condition,  of  thirty-three  feet.  On  three  sides  there  is  a 
range  of  steps  in  the  middle,  each  step  seventeen  inches  high, 
and  but  eight  inches  on  the  upper  surface,  which  makes  the 
range  so  steep  that  in  descending  some  caution  is  necessary. 
At  the  corners  there  are  four  buttresses  of  cut  stone,  dimin- 
ishing in  size  from  the  line  of  the  square,  and  apparently 
intended  to  support  the  structure.  On  the  side  facing  the 
west  there  are  no  steps,  but  the  surface  is  smooth  and 
covered  with  stucco,  gray  from  long  exposure.  By  break- 
ing a  little  at  the  corners,  we  saw  that  there  were  different 
layers  of  stucco,  doubtless  put  in  at  different  times,  and  all 
had  been  ornamented  with  painted  figures.  In  one  place  we 
made  out  part  of  the  body  of  a  leopard,  well  drawn  and 
colored. 

"  The  top  of  the  Sacrificatorio  is  broken  and  ruined,  but 
there  is  no  doubt  that  it  once  supported  an  altar  for  those 
sacrifices  of  human  victims  which  struck  even  the  Spaniards 
with  horror.  It  was  barely  large  enough  for  the  altar  and 
officiating  priests,  and  the  idol  to  whom  the  sacrifice  was 
offered. 

"  The  barbarous  ministers  carried  up  the  victim  nearly 
naked,  pointed  out  the  idol  to  which  the  sacrifice  was  made, 
that  the  people  might  pay  their  adorations,  and  then  extended 
him  upon  the  altar.  This  had  a  convex  surface,  and  the  body 
of  the  victim  lay  arched,  with  the  trunk  elevated  and  the 
head  and  feet  depressed.  Four  priests  held  the  legs  and 
arms,  and  another  kept  his  head  firm  with  a  wooden  instru- 
ment, made  in  the  form  of  a  coiled  serpent,  so  that  he  was 
prevented    from    making    the    least    movement.      The    head 


THE    MYSTERY    OF    I'ALENQUE.  257 

priest  then  approached,  and  with  a  knife  made  of  flint  cut 
an  aperture  in  the  breast,  and  tore  out  the  heart,  which,  yet 
palpitating,  he  offered  to  the  sun,  and  then  threw  it  at  the 
feet  of  the  idol.  If  the  idol  was  gigantic  and  hollow,  it  was 
usual  to  induce  the  heart  of  the  victim  into  its  mouth  with  a 
golden  spoon.  If  the  victim  was  a  prisoner  of  war,  as  soon 
as  he  was  sacrificed  they  cut  off  the  head  to  preserve  the 
skull,  and  threw  the  body  down  the  steps,  when  it  was  taken 
up  by  the  officer  or  soldier  to  whom  the  prisoner  belonged, 
and  carried  to  his  house  to  be  dressed  and  served  up  as  an 
entertainment  for  his  friends.  If  he  was  not  a  prisoner  of 
war,  but  a  slave  purchased  for  the  sacrifice,  the  proprietor 
carried  off  the  body  for  the  same  purpose.  In  recurring  to 
the  barbarous  scenes  of  which  the  spot  had  been  the  theatre, 
it  seemed  a  righteous  award  that  the  bloody  altar  was  hurled 
down,  and  the  race  of  its  ministers  destroyed." 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

A    PHILOSOPHICAL    MONKEY. 

IF  our  travellers  could  not  well  visit  the  mysterious  ruins  of 
Palenque  or  Quiche,  they  could  go  to  see  the  tall  monu- 
ments of  Quiriqua,  an  easier  journey  of  a  few  clays  by  water, 
and  the  royal  road,  and  this  they  determined  to  do.  They 
secured  a  negro  guide  at  Lake  Isabel,  and  set  out  in  a 
mahogany  boat  at  first,  then  over  the  public  way.  Their 
journey  lay  over  magnificent  elevations,  commanding  wide 
and  enchanting  prospects,  and  through  forests  of  mahogany 
and  cedar,  in  which  a  thousand  parrots,  and  many  monkeys, 
inquired  why  they  had  come. 

The  monuments  of  Quiriqua  are  called  "  idols,"  though 
whether  or  not  they  were  ever  used  for  the  latter  purpose 
can  never  be  known,  until  some  "  Egyptologist  "  or,  rather, 
"  Guatemalologist,"  shall  find  the  lost  key  to  the  inscrip- 
tion left  by  the  vanished  race,  whose  records  are  now  a 
mystery. 

The  first  monument  that  they  met  in  the  great  forest  grave- 
yard was  curious  indeed,  with  the  front  of  a  man  and  the 
back  of  a  woman.  It  rose  some  twenty  feet  above  the 
ground,  and  was  covered  with  inscriptions,  every  letter  of 
which  represented  a  lost  art. 

Near  it,  like  a  leaning  tower,  was  an  obelisk,  some  twenty- 

25S 


A    PHILOSOPHICAL    MONKEY.  259 

six  feet  high.  On  it  were  sculptured  two,  probably  royal, 
heads,  but  whose,  the  visitor  could  know  no  more  than  the 
trees. 

They  sat  down  under  the  trees,  at  the  base  of  what  had 
been  a  pyramidal  wall,  and  surveyed  the  zigzag  repositories 
of  history  and  legend  around  them. 

The  guide  prepared  for  them  their  comida  (dinner)  there. 
He  spread  out  his  tortillas,  and  kindled  a  fire,  and  boiled 
a  number  of  hucvos  (eggs),  which  he  had  brought  with  him 
for  the  purpose. 

Parrots  gathered  around  the  place,  and  seemed  to  be  hold- 
ing a  convention.  Monkeys  gathered  near,  on  the  trees,  and 
held  a  council,  or  conference  meeting,  or,  perhaps,  an  inquiry 
meeting.  There  was  one  venerable-looking  monkey  to  whom 
the  others  seemed  to  look  for  wisdom.  He  dropped  down 
carefully  from  limb  to  limb,  and  glanced  from  time  to  time 
significantly  at  the  others  —  some  of  whom  were  little  rogues 
in  appearance,  as  much  so  in  habits,  as  the  end  of  their  delib- 
erations proved. 

Having  wandered  away  from  the  place  of  the  fire,  while  the 
food  was  preparing,  cutting  down  bushes  around  half-sunken 
monuments,  with  their  machetes,  the  travellers  became  lost  to 
the  view  of  the  guide,  and  he  came  to  look  for  them,  crying,  — 

"Comida,  Senores  !  " 

They  returned  with  him  to  the  meal,  very  hungry,  when 
they  saw  his  eyes  widen  and  heard  him  cry  out,  as  in  a  spasm. 

The  tortillas  had  vanished  ;  so  had  the  eggs,  and  every- 
thing. 

The  little  monkeys  were  gone,  and  the  parrots  seemed  to 
be  laughing  or  wondering,  when  they  saw  the  old  philosopher 


260  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

of  the  monkey  colony  looking  down  upon  them,  from  a  high 
limb  of  a  tree  to  which  he  had  ascended. 

The  guide  saw  him,  and  hurled  terrible  words  at  him.  He 
seemed  to  have  a  lively  sense  of  the  disappointments  of  this 
world,  and  he  pointed  to  some  vines  at  a  little  distance. 

They  went  to  the  place,  and  found  under  them  the  cooked 
eggs,  but  no  monkeys.  The  latter  had  fled,  like  a  village  at 
some  terrible  news.      Why  had  they  gone  ? 

The  guide  began  to  pick  up  the  eggs.  He  dropped  one, 
shaking  his  fingers. 

"  Caliente  (hot),"  said  he. 

"  That  was  what  the  little  monkeys  said  to  each  other 
before  they  made  their  adios,"  exclaimed  the  captain. 

"You  are  right,"  said  the  guide.  "The  eggs  burned  their 
fingers,  and  they  seem  to  have  all  found  it  out  in  one  place  ; 
they  could  not  hold  them  to  run  up  the  lianas." 

They  gathered  up  the  eggs  and  looked  up  to  the  tree  for 
the  philosopher,  but  he  too  had  gone.  What  the  monkeys 
had  to  say  to  each  other  at  their  next  conference  meeting 
we  do  not  know ;  probably  that  eggs  are  not  desirable  for 
food. 

The  interest  which  these  tall  monuments  had  awakened 
led  the  travellers  to  desire  to  go  onward  to  Copan,  which 
was  near.  Here  a  great  city,  whose  very  name  was  now 
lost,  had  been. 

Copan  lies  in  the  Honduras  district  in  a  fertile  valley, 
famous  for  its  tobacco.  Here  are  the  ruins  of  a  temple, 
whose  river  wall  is  more  than  six  hundred  feet  long  and 
nearly  ninety  feet  high.  It  is  thought  that  here  rose  gigantic 
monuments  that  faced  the  river. 


A    PHILOSOPHICAL    MONKEY.  26 1 

To  have  seen  this  temple  in  the  day  of  its  glory,  with  its 
gates,  its  wide  avenues,  its  painted  and  sculptured  walls,  and 
its  probable  ornaments  of  gold,  silver,  and  gems,  would  have 
been  to  have  taken  a  view  of  the  New  World  in  the  day  of  its 
barbarian  glory.  Magnificent  "  idols,"  statues,  and  monu- 
ments were  everywhere  to  be  found.  What  sculptors  must 
have  lived  here  !  what  schools  of  sculpture  must  have  opened 
their  doors  to  the  sun !  One  of  the  most  beautiful  of  these 
monuments  was  larger  at  the  top  than  at  the  bottom. 

They  did  not  lose  their  dinner  here,  but  spread  it  on  a 
sculptured  altar  amid  the  fallen  terraces  of  kings. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

A    GUATEMALA    COFFEE    PLANTATION. 

OUR  travellers  had  seen  many  coffee  estates  on  their 
long  journey,  but  never  one  like  that  which  they  were 
now  about  to  visit  in  the  plateau  of  Guatemala.  It  belonged 
to  an  Englishman,  who  derived  an  almost  fabulous  income 
from  it;  but  it  was  in  charge  of  an  American  to  whom  Cap- 
tain Frobisher  had  letters  of  introduction.  The  latter's  name 
was  Holme. 

The  plantation  occupied  hundreds  of  acres,  —  a  sun  land 
under  mountain  shadows. 

"  The  most  beautiful  sight  in  all  the  gardens  of  the  world," 
said  Eeigh  Frobisher,  as  the  plantation  came  into  view.  The 
planter's  house  was  covered  with  airy  verandas,  open  doors, 
and  latticed  windows.  Tall  trees  spread  over  it  right-angled 
limbs,  like  priests  at  the  benediction. 

They  entered  the  grounds  on  muleback. 

The  coffee  plants  were  some  six  or  more  feet  high  and 
were  covered  with  crimson  berries.  They  were  arranged  in 
long  rows,  or  gardens,  covering  many  acres,  and  were  sub- 
divided by  avenues  of  bowery  trees. 

The  house  was  like  an  island  in  a  sea  of  flowers. 

Senor  Holme,  although  a  stranger,  received  the  party  as 

262 


A    GUATEMALA    COFFEE    PLANTATION.  263 

though  they  were  a  part  of  his  own  family.  He  had  learned 
the  delights  of  Spanish  hospitality.  His  wife,  the  seiiora, 
had  caught  the  same  spirit. 

The  house  on  the  inside  had  French  furniture,  and  with  its 
slender  form  seemed  like  a  structure  of  the  air. 

After  a  tropical  meal,  they  were  taken  out  to  view  the 
place. 

"  My  nephew,  Master  Alonzo,"  said  Captain  Frobisher, 
"  has  been  studying  the  coffee  trade  somewhat  in  the  South 
American  ports.  We  have  seen  some  small  coffee  fields,  but 
never  an  estate  like  this." 

They  rode  out  into  the  bright,  glowing  coffee  gardens, 
under  the  shade  of  the  long  avenue  of  trees.  The  coffee 
plants  stood  in  rows  on  every  hand. 

"  There  seems  not  to  be  a  weed  anywhere,"  said  Alonzo 
to  Senor  Holme. 

"  No,  the  peons  do  their  work  thoroughly,"  said  the  senor. 
"  We  pay  our  Indian  workmen,  which  is  not  clone  on  many 
plantations." 

"  How  do  they  secure  the  service  of  Indians  on  other 
plantations  ? "    asked  Captain    Frobisher,  in    some    surprise. 

"  When  a  grandee  purchases  an  estate  on  which  are 
Indians,  he  allows  the  Indians  to  live  there  and  exacts  their 
work  as  rent." 

"  But  is  not  that  slavery  ?  "  asked  Leigh. 

"A  kind  of  slavery,"  said  the  senor.  "The  English 
plantations  are  conducted,  as  a  rule,  with  fairness  towards  the 
peons,  though  the  Indian  labor  costs  little,  a  real  or  shilling, 
or  twelve  and  a  hall  cents  a  day,  — a  small  sum  compared 
with  the  pay  for  like  work  in  the  States." 


264  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  How  much  coffee  does  an  estate  like  this  produce  ?  " 
asked  the  captain. 

"  A  thousand  or  more  quintals  yearly,"  said  the  planter. 

"  Will  you  tell  us  how  the  crop  is  produced  ? "  asked 
Alonzo  in  intense  interest. 

"  Yes ;  but  the  fields  tell  their  own  story. 

"  You  see  the  stems,  the  drooping  branches,  and  the  red 
berries.  The  leaves  in  the  early  season  are  of  a  deep  green, 
the  flowers  are  small  and  white  and  fragrant. 

"  You  see  what  the  red  berries  are.  I  will  pick  some  for 
you  and  we  will  examine  them." 

The  planter  secured  some  of  the  cranberry-like  berries. 
They  consisted  of  a  pulp,  in  which  were  two  seeds  which 
grew  facing  each  other,  but  with  oval  sides. 

The  gardens  were  shaded.  In  one  part  of  them  were 
beautiful  trees  with  overhanging  branches,  in  another  part 
were  lofty  banana  leaves.  The  planter  explained  that  the 
coffee  plant  requires  shade,  as  does  the  South  American 
cocoa.  As  the  planter  becomes  rich,  he  employs  many  oxen, 
and  uses  expensive  machinery. 

"  We  pick  the  berries,"  explained  the  planter,  "and  run 
them  with  water  through  a  pulping  machine  which  separates 
the  kernel  from  the  pulp.  The  coffee  is  then  dried  in  the 
sun.  It  is  then  picked  over,  graded,  and  bagged,  and  taken 
to  the  port  by  oxen,  mules,  or  on  the  backs  of  Indians. 

"The  coffee  crop  here  goes  to  England  and  Germany.  It 
is  exported  from  Champerio  and  other  ports." 

"What  are  the  profits  of  a  coffee  plantation?"  asked 
Alonzo. 

"  A  large  coffee  plantation   produces  a  very  large  income. 


A    GUATEMALA    COFFEE    PLANTATION.  265 

It  is  claimed  that  after  six  years  it  will  yield  yearly  an  income 
as  large  as  the  original  cost.  The  owners  of  the  coffee  plan- 
tations become  rich  men  ;  the  crop  does  not  fail,  and  a  ready 
market  awaits  the  superior  berry." 

As  they  rode  along  under  the  bowery  avenues,  Leigh 
looked   up  to  the  mountains. 

"Do  you  ever  find  rare  birds  in  the  mountain  forests?" 
he  asked. 

"  Yes,  my  lad,  some  very  curious  birds  and  animals.  Are 
you  an  ornithologist?" 

"  I  have  been  trying  to  secure  a  few  specimens  of  rare 
birds.  I  found  a  quetzal  in  Nicaragua,  and  was  very  much 
gratified  to  have  such  a  treasure  to  take  home  with  us,  when 
I  found  that,  it  was  not  the  royal  bird  of  the  caciques,  and 
the  national  emblem  of  Guatemala,  but  of  an  inferior  family 
of  the  species." 

"  Would  you  like  a  true  quetzal  ?  " 

"  Nothing  would  please  me  more,  Sehor." 

"I  will  let  one  of  the  Indians  find  one  for  you,  my  young 
friend.  Yon  shall  go  with  him,  if  you  like.  The  Indians 
here  are  to  be  trusted,  and  there  is  nothing  that  they  are  not 
glad  to  do  for  a.  white  stranger.  I  will  make  you  acquainted 
with  one  oi  the  Indians  who  is  skilled  in  hunting." 

"  It  might  be  hard  to  secure  a  quetzal  alive,"  ventured 
Leigh. 

"Trust  to  the   Indian,  my  bow  trust  to   him.      He  will   get 
for  you  a  live  quetzal,  it  any  one  can.      You  shall  surely  have 
a  royal   bird    to  take    back    to  the   States   as   a    souvenir   ot 
Guatemala  !  " 

The   Indian   secured    a   quetzal.      It   was   a  beautiful    bird. 


266  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

He  put  it  into  Leigh's  hands.  The  bird  struggled.  Its 
plumes  came  off.  In  his  attempt  to  handle  it  lightly,  he  let 
it  escape.  It  tried  to  reach  a  tree,  but  fell  upon  the  ground, 
torn  and  dead. 


CHAPTER   XXXVI. 

PEQUENA    PARIS  :    A    CITY    OF    SURPRISE. 

FIVE  thousand  feet  above  the  sea  level  stands  Guatemala 
City,  and  the  first  view  of  it  is  an  astonishment.  The 
traveller  who  crosses  the  flat,  dreary  Canadian  plains,  and  is 
brought  suddenly  into  view  of  the  glorious  city  of  Montreal, 
wonders  if  he  is  not  dreaming  or  bereft  of  his  senses.  He 
has  not  expected  to  find  a  city  so  vast  and  beautiful.  So 
with  the  tourist  over  the  weary  mountain  roads  of  Guate- 
mala -he  does  not  expect  to  come  upon  a  mountain  glory 
in  the  city  of  the  high  valley  or  plateau. 

The  climate  here  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful  on 
earth.  It  has  the  charm  of  being  no  climate  at  all  —  no  hay. 
Heat  and  cold  have  disappeared;  it  is  such  an  atmosphere  as 
a  poet  might  picture  in  some  ideal  and  visioned  world.  Here 
the  roses  might  weave  their  wreath  around  the  year.  In  the 
dry  season  every  day  is  sunshine.  In  the  rainy  season  the 
clouds  come  suddenly  every  day  ;  the  rain  falls  deliciously,  and 
then  the  clouds  dissolve  in  splendor  and  all  is  bright  again. 

Nearly  fifty  thousand  inhabitants  enjoy  these  balmy  airs 
ol  the  city  of  the  mountain  solitudes,  which  is  only  about  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  years  old.  The  old  capital  Antiqua 
went  down,  and  this  city  rose  in  its  place.      It  cannot  be  said  as 

267 


268  LOST    IX    NICARAGUA. 

of  Caracas  that  Guatemala  City  sleeps  in  her  own  grave,  for 
Antiqua  lies  in  ruin  some  thirty  miles  away. 

One  is  at  home  here  in  these  far  mountains.  There  are 
no  "  dont's "  here.  The  horse-car  and  the  electric  lights 
are  here,  and  the  streets  are  hospitable,  broad,  and  firmly 
paved.  Parks  are  here,  pleasant  squares,  and  very  beautiful 
gardens,  all  balm   and  bloom. 

And  the  quetzal  is  here,  the  true  quetzal,  that  outvies 
with  his  plumes  the  rarest  orchids  and  lustrous  green  of  the 
palm,  the  balsam,  and  vine.  Here  is  the  city  of  the  quetzal. 
The  bird  of  the  sun  in  its  trailing  splendor  stands  for  the 
state. 

The  public  buildings  are  the  angles  and  proportions  of 
beauty.  The  houses  are  low,  but  they  enclose  squares  of 
flowers,  birds,  and  tasteful  adornments,  that  cause  the  visi- 
tors' feet  to  move  slowly,  as  is  the  case  in  the  suburbs  of 
Montevideo,  or  in  Belgrano  and  Flores,  the  beautiful  sub- 
urbs of  Buenos  Ayres. 

Does  one  wish  to  hide  from  the  world,  to  shut  out  the 
social  pressure  upon  him,  to  hear  nothing  of  far-away  dis- 
sensions, suicides,  defalcations,  human  afflictions? — -here  is  a 
place  for  him  to  rest. 

The  houses  look  like  prisons  at  first  until  their  iron  doors 
are  opened.  Then  all  is  brightness,  verdure,  bloom,  and 
beauty. 

The  Grand  Hotel  —  we  are  not  advertising- — is  a  place 
where  one  may  find  a  hearty  English  welcome,  and  feel  that 
there  beat  honest  hearts  within,  and  fifty  thousand  hearts 
as  honest  around  him.  "  Dont's "  are  not  a  part  of  the 
habit  of  the  streets  and  squares,  so  the  cheats   and  thieves 


PEQUEXA    PARIS  :    A    CITV    OF    SURPRISE.  269 

and  book  agents,  and  people  who  would  benefit  themselves 
in  the  name  of  the  varied  needs  of  humanity,  do  not  bother 
you  here.  They  talk  Spanish  here,  and  English  and 
German. 

The  hotel  is  two  stories  high,  and  it  encloses  a  square, 
and  from  the  balcony  on  the  inside  one  looks  down  on  a 
Guatemalan  garden. 

How  lovely  is  this  garden,  from  which  rises  a  fountain. 
The  palm  is  here,  the  orange  tree,  the  peach,  the  flowers 
that  nestle  in  vines.  It  is  the  home  of  the  busy  and  inquisi- 
tive parrot  and  native  birds.  The  sky  is  its  roof,  and  the 
stars  come  to  visit  it  at  night,  when  the  fountain  plashes  and 
the  birds  have  put  their  heads  under  their  wings. 

One  has  pancakes  with  honey  and  fried  plantains  on  his 
breakfast  bill  here,  and  coffee  la  sitpcrba,  and  the  chocolate 
of  the  country,  and  the  fruits  of  the  same  ;  one  has  for  din- 
ner almost  everything,  and  everything  one  may  call  for  during 
the  rest  of  the  day.  One  may  have  coffee  and  sweet  bread 
brought  to  one's  room  before  rising  if  one  so  desires,  when 
the  birds  are  singing  and  the  sun  is  pouring  his  splendors 
over  the  dewy  palm  lands,  and  causing  even  the  lazy  quet- 
zal to  move  about  and  shake  its  gorgeous  feathers. 

The  Great  Plaza  —  the  Plaza  Mayor  —  is  a  place  to  which 
it  is  a  delight  to  return.  Here  is  a  cathedral,  built  by  the 
Spaniards  in  the  days  of  fabulous  riches,  that  recalls  the 
cathedral  of  Lima  and  that  of  Mexico.  One  wonders  how 
such  a  structure  should  have  found  a  place  here.  The  gov- 
ernment buildings  are  fine.  The  cathedral  does  not  stand 
alone  among  the  surprising  splendors.  There  are  other 
churches  of  great   beauty  built  in  the    Spanish    period.      We 


2/0  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

speak  of  Spain  as  cruel  and  wanting  in  a  sense  of  justice, 
but  one  wonders  at  the  development  of  religious  instinct  as 
illustrated  by  such  piles  of  reverent  beauty  as  one  finds  in  a 
wilderness  like  this.  What  pleasing  frescoes!  what  curious 
paintings  !   what  dazzling  altars  ! 

But  the  market  is  the  place  of  merriment,  and  one  turns 
from  the  squares  of  cacti  to  it,  with  new  wonder  daily.  Here 
the  Indians  come  down  from  the  mountains  with  their  wares. 
As  honest  as  they  are,  they  compete  and  barter,  and  kill  time 
by  market  talk.  The  Indian  women  arc  clever,  and  the 
girls  are  beautiful,  and  the  latter  follow  you  about  with  bas- 
kets on  their  heads,  which  answer  for  express  wagons  in  tak- 
ing away  your  purchases.  What  fruits  are  here  !  what 
flowers !  what  vegetables  !  One  feels  here  that  this  is  a 
most  beautiful  world,  and  wonders  why  the  holiday  does  not 
last  forever. 

There  is  an  English  school  here,  and  a  very  prosperous 
one,  and  to  the  traveller  from  the  States  it  has  the  attraction 
of  a  song  of  the  homeland.  Guatemala  City  is  a  place  of 
colegios  and  schools,  the  fruit  of  the  policy  of  President 
Barrios.  The  boys'  school  here  has  some  three  hundred 
pupils.  It  has  a  gymnasium  and  a  museum.  The  geological 
garden  contains  all  the  principal  animals  and  birds  of  the 
country,  and  the  botanical  garden  is  a  revelation  of  the 
resources  of  the    Guatemalan  world. 

But  with  all  this  arc  the  evidences  of  a  progressive  spirit 
everywhere.  The  little  Paris,  in  the  far,  far  mountains  of 
the  vanished  races,  is  one  of  the  rarely  conditioned  spots  of 
the  world. 

From  Guatemala  City  our  travellers  visited  a  remarkable 


PEOUEN'A    PARIS:    A    CITY    OF    SURPRISE.  2"]  \ 

little  republic,  than  which   few  places  more  ideal  are  to  be 
found. 

THE    LITTLE    REPUBLIC    THAT    WINS    SUCCESS. 

San  Salvador  is  a  wonder,  and  the  wonder  grows  ;  she  is 
the  little  republic  that  in  prosperity  may  be  said  to  outdo 
the  others.  San  Salvador  has  an  area  of  only  about  seven 
thousand  square  miles,  is  only  one  hundred  and  eighty-six 
miles  long,  and  of  varying  narrowness  ;  and  yet,  relatively,  she 
is  the  richest  and  most  densely  populated  state  in  Central 
America,  and  in  the  wonders  of  her  physical  features  is  in 
some  respects  one  of  the  most  interesting.  She  has  one  of 
the  most  curious  volcanoes  in  the  world,  —  a  chimney  of  fire 
in  a  lake. 

The  plains  here  are  ancient  ashes,  and  the  crust  of  these 
when  broken  is  most  fertile.  Here  one  rides  on  craters  of 
long-dead  volcanoes,  and  knows  it  not.  Here  the  air  is  a 
splendor,  the  mountains  a  glory,  and  existence  a  charm. 
The  mountains  overshadow  the  plantations,  and  the  deep  sea 
lies  placid  before  them.  Everything  seems  to  grow  here, 
and  coffee  is  wealth.  Like  the  Yellowstone  Park,  the  land 
is  full  of  strange  springs  and  lakes  in  a  state  of  ebullition, 
earths  of  many  colors  caused  by  gases,  and  ausoles,  or  ground 
eruptions,  that  deposit  these  variegated  clays. 

The  volcano  ol  Izalco  is  a  wonder,  it  belongs  to  those 
that  haw:  made  their  appearance  since  the  time  of  discovery. 
( )n  February  23,  1770,  the  earth  suddenly  opened  and  poured 
forth  a  fiery  mass  ol  lava  and  smoke.  Then  a  cone  began 
to  rise  above  the  earth,  and  has  continued  to  rise,  grow,  and 
expand,  sending  into  the  air  a  column  ol  smoke. 


2J2  LOST    IN'    NICARAGUA. 

This  smoke  once  enshrouded  a  body  of  fire,  which  was 
emitted  with  tremendous  explosions.  It  was  a  natural  light- 
house to  the  still  Pacific,  and  was  called  "  Faro  del  Salvador" 
(the  lighthouse  of  Salvador). 

There  came  to  the  new  wonder  a  period  of  rest  in  1866, 
when  two  naturalists  ascended  it,  and  found  there  three 
craters,  one  of  which  hissed  and  rumbled. 

As  wonderful  is  Lage  Yelopango,  which  is  some  sixteen 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  and  has  an  area  of  twenty-four 
miles. 

This  lake  seems  to  have  moved  about.  In  1873  it  was 
raised  up,  with  a  violent  agitation,  and  in  1879  it  was  in  like 
manner  raised  again. 

It  was  dammed  up,  but  made  for  itself  a  channel.  In 
fifty  or  more  days  it  fell  some  thirty-five  feet.  The  waters 
smoked,  flamed,  and  boiled,  and  islands  rose  in  the  midst  of 
the  seething  waters. 

When  this  period  of  agitation  was  over,  there  remained  in 
the  lake  a  single  smoking  chimney  of  hard  lava,  one  hundred 
and  sixty  feet  high,  and  one  of  the  most  curious  objects  of 
the  recent  miracles  of  the  natural  world. 

(See  The  Earth  and  its  Inhabitants,  Vol.  II.  D.  Apple- 
ton  &  Co.) 

It  is  a  land  of  volcanoes,  and  the  view  of  the  Pacific  and 
the  palm  regions  from  some  of  them  is  most  glorious.  Here, 
too,  the  earth  trembles  from  time  to  time,  and  the  city  of 
San  Salvador  has  been  overthrown  some  seven  times  in  three 
hundred  years,  or  during  the  historic  period. 

The  inhabitants  arc  largely  of  Spanish-Indian  descent. 
The  native   Indians  cultivate  maize  and  bananas. 


SAN    SALVADOR.  273 

The  population  of  this  volcanic  country  has  grown  from 
1 17,436,  in  1778,  to  777,895,  in  1891,  being  now  about  seventy 
inhabitants  to  the  square  mile. 

To  the  planters  it  was  formerly  a  land  of  indigo ;  now  it  is 
a  garden  of  coffee  and  sugar,  from  which  a  great  revenue 
is  derived. 

It  has  fine  carriage  roads,  which  bring  the  produce  down 
to  the  sea. 

San  Salvador  was  formerly  a  part  of  the  viceroyalty  of 
Guatemala.  She  achieved  her  independence  of  Spain  in 
1 82 1.  The  President  is  elected  for  a  term  of  four  years. 
The  national  assembly  is  elected  yearly. 

San  Salvador,  the  capital,  has  twenty  thousand  inhabi- 
tants. 

Primary  school  education  here  is  free  and  compulsory, 
and  though  a  Catholic  state,  all  religions  are  tolerated.  In 
1890,   355   steamers  entered  its  ports. 

These  facts  make  an  ideal  picture  of  the  people  of 
a  land  that  is  very  narrow  and  less  than  200  miles  long, 
a  part  of  which  shakes,  trembles,  and  moves  about,  and 
whose  income  from  coffee  alone  is  more  than  4,000,000 
pesos. 

The  bit  of  a  republic,  so  active  and  progressive,  exported 
to  the  United  States,  in  1 890-1891,  eoffee  to  the  value  of 
$1,670,869. 

The  forests  of  San  Salvador  are  beautiful.  Here  is  the 
land  of  balsams  and  healing  plants,  of  which  there  is  a  large 
export  to  the  United  States. 

The  little  land  of  progress  is  reached  from  New  York  via 
Panama,    a    distance    of    nearly    3000    miles,   and    from    San 

T 


274  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

Francisco,  a  distance  of    2499   miles,  in    sixteen  days,  at  a 
fare  of  $100. 

The  travellers  returned  to  the  Atlantic  coast  by  the  way  of 
Coban.  Their  journey  had  been  one  of  remarkable  scenes, 
but  they  had  not  yet  secured  a  quetzal. 


CHAPTER    XXXVII. 


NO    HAY        AND    "  NO    SE. 


"  J Z  OIL  A  les  Etats  Unis!"  was  the  cry  that  greeted  our 
travellers  as  they  rode  into  an  Indian  town,  on  their 
way  to  the  beautiful  Indian  city  of  Coban.  The  place  was 
some  five  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  They 
were  very  tired  after  a  long  ride,  and  they  sunk  down 
under  a  shed   in   which  stood  a  row  of  mules. 

Leigh  was  the  least  fatigued,  and  he  began  to  seek  to 
make  arrangements  for  the  comfort  of  the  party. 

"Where  is  the  tavern  ?  "   he  asked  of  the  muleteer. 

"  No  hay  (there  is  none),"  said  the  easy-going  man.  "No 
hay,  Senor." 

"  What  do  travellers  do  who  arrive  here  at  night  without 
friends?"  continued  Leigh. 

"No  sc  (I  do  not  know),"  answered  the  muleteer.  "  ATo 
st\  Senor." 

"Where  is  the  posada  (lodging  house)?" 

"No  hay,  no  hay,  Senor." 

"Where  is  the  cabildo  (town  house)?" 

"No  hay,  no  hay,  Senor        it  is  the  jail." 

"  Do  they  lodge  travellers  in  the   jail   here?"   asked  Leigh. 


2/6  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  Si,  Sen  or." 

"  Where  can  we  find  a  supper  ?  " 

"  Aqui  (here)." 

"Bucno"  said  Leigh.  The  muleteer  went  into  his  long  hut 
which  stood  under  an  immense  hill,  with  sheltering  arms  high 
in  the  air.  In  front  of  the  hut,  women  were  rubbing  coffee 
berries,  separating  the  pulp  from  the  kernel. 

"  Tortillas"  said  the  muleteer  to  one  of  the  women,  who 
was  probably  his  wife. 

Leigh  went  back  to  Captain  Frobisher  and  Alonzo  and 
informed  them,  to  their  joy,  that  he  had  ordered  a  supper  in 
the  house. 

They  waited  to  be  called  to  the  meal,  for  which  they  had 
a  mountain  appetite. 

But  there  is  plenty  of  time  in  Guatemala,  and  time  to 
spare. 

"When  will  the  supper  be  ready?"  asked  Alonzo  of  the 
muleteer  at  last,  impatiently. 

"  No  se,  Senor." 

The  man  went  to  the  kitchen,  which  in  this  case  was 
the  whole  house,  and  after  more  spare  time,  of  which  there 
seemed  to  be  plenty,  he  beckoned  to  the  weary,  hungry  party 
from  the  door. 

Our  travellers  started  up.  The  odor  of  the  tortillas  (cakes) 
filled  the  room. 

There  was  a  board  for  a  table,  and  on  this  the  cakes  were 
set,  with  frijoles  (black  beans).  Black  coffee  followed. 
They  were  impatient  to  eat. 

"  A  knife  ?  "   said  Captain  Frobisher.      "  Confavor.,y 

"  No  hay"  answered  the  woman.      "A  machete?" 


"no  hay      and  "no  se."  277 

"No,  no,"  said  Captain  Frobishcr.     "  CucJiillo  (knife)." 

"No  hay,  Scnor." 

"Fork,  Scnora  ?" 

"  No  hay,  Scnor." 

"  Spoon,  Scnora?" 

"  No  hay,  Scnor." 

"We  cannot  cat  without  knife,  fork,  or  spoon,"  said 
Leigh. 

"  But  how  did  people  cat  when  there  were  no  knives,  forks, 
or  spoons?"  asked  Captain  Frobishcr.  "I  am  so  hungry 
that  I  am  going  back  to  that  time." 

He  did.  He  found  that  fingers  had  their  ancient  power  of 
service.      The  boys  followed  his  example. 

The  cakes  were  excellent,  the  black  beans  good,  and  the 
coffee  bitter. 

"Milk,  Scnora,"  said  Leigh. 

"  ATo  hay,  Scnor." 

She  added,  "  I  will  go  and  fetch  some." 

But  our  travellers  could  not  wait. 

"  Beds,"  said  Captain  Frobishcr.      "  Beds  for  the  night." 

She  pointed  to  a  building  of  some  pretensions  across  the 
way,  and  made  the  startling  announcement,— 

"  You  must  go  to  the  jail,  Scnor." 

Leigh  looked  at  Alon/.o,  and  both  to  Uncle  Frobishcr. 

"What  for?"  asked  Captain  Frobishcr. 

"  For  a  traveller,  Scnor." 

"I  must  seethe  commandantc  (governor  or  mayor),"  said 
Captain   Krobisher. 

lie  went  to  the  large  house  over  the  way,  and  found  the 
commandantc. 


2/8  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  Where  can  some  travellers  find  lodgings,  Senor  ? "  he 
asked. 

"  Here,  my  friend." 

"  Is  not  this  a  prison  ?  " 

"  Yes,  my  friend,  it  is  so  used  when  there  is  need.  There 
are  no  prisoners  here  now.  I  will  have  cots  brought  in  for 
you." 

They  were  at  ease  now,  and  went  out  into  the  short  twi- 
light to  see  the  town.  It  had  been  a  market  day,  but  most 
of  the  people  had  gone  away.  A  few  remained  in  some 
tents. 

Here  one  could  buy  as  many  luscious  bananas  as  one  could 
carry  away  for  a  few  pennies.  Pineapples,  cocoanuts,  and 
many  curious  fruits,  whose  names  are  unknown  to  the  new- 
comer, could  be  had  for  a  trifle. 

They  returned  to  the  cabildo,  where  chicha  (the  popular 
beverage)  was  offered  them  by  a  morjo  (manservant.) 

Before  they  retired,  Leigh  was  sent  out  to  ask  the  muleteer 
when  he  would  be  ready  to  start  in  the  morning.  He 
returned  doubtfully. 

"What  is  it?"  asked  Captain  Frobisher. 

"  Aro  sc,"  answered  Leigh. 

They  bid  the  commandante  "Buenos  nocJie  (Good  night)." 
When  surveying  their  room,  Captain  Frobisher  ventured 
once  more  to  bring  back  the  customs  he  had  left  beyond 
the  mountains. 

"  Mozo!  " 

"  Si,  Sen  or  ?  " 

"  Agua  (water),  water,  Mozo." 

"No  hay:' 


"NO    HAY        AND    "NO    SE.  279 

Then  they  heard  strange  musical  instruments  in  the  dis- 
tance ;  then  light  after  light  went  out  in  the  Indian  huts ; 
then  the  light  vanished  in  the  hall  of  the  cabildo ;  then  all 
was  dark  and  still,  in  the  land  of  no  hay  and  no  se. 


CHAPTER    XXXVIII. 

COBAN,  THE  CITY  OF  THE  QUETZAL. 

WHEREVER  of  late  Leigh  had  inquired  about  the 
royal  bird  of  the  Aztecs,  whose  form  appears  on  the 
beautiful  national  emblem  of  Guatemala  above  the  scroll 
bearing  the  words  " Libertad  \^th  de  Setiembrc,  182 1,"  he 
was  told,  "You  will  find  it  at  Coban,  the  mountain  town." 
He  might  have  expected  to  have  heard  the  bird's  name  asso- 
ciated with  Ouezaltenango,  in  the  same  region  ;  but  Coban 
was  the  place  commonly  assigned  as  the  market-place  of  the 
feathered  splendor. 

"  Ticnc  ustcd  quetzal  (have  you  the  quetzal)?"  he  asked 
again  in  market-places  in  Guatemala. 

"  Coban,"  was  the  invariable  answer. 

He  had  pictured  to  himself  a  bird  market  at  Coban,  in 
which  the  royal  bird  should  appear  to  the  wonder  and 
delight  of  the  traveller.  He  was  told  that  its  value  there 
depended  on  the  length  of  the  tail  plumes,  some  of  which 
were  said  to  be  three  feet  long.  It  would  in  such  a  case  be 
a  difficult  pet  to  manage.  Some  of  the  natives  had  said  that 
it  was  ticrno  (tender),  which  he  fancied  might  mean  to  eat. 

"Are  there  many  quetzals  in  the  country?"  he  asked  of 
a  dealer  in  birds. 

280 


COBAN,  THE  CITY  OF  THE  QUETZAL.  28 1 

"  Many,  Senor." 

"  Where  do  they  live  ?  " 

"  High  up  —  high  up,  amid  the  mountain  forests,"  said  the 
pajarcro,  "at  Coban." 

After  a  long,  hard  journey,  amid  tropical  roads,  cooled  by 
lofty  trees,  every  trunk  of  which  seemed  to  be  a  flower  gar- 
den, the\'  came  to  the  city  of  the  supposed  market-place  of 
the  historic  bird. 

Coban  stands  at  an  elevation  of  some  4500  feet,  and  the 
hills  rise  above  it.  The  pass  in  the  mountains  here  over- 
looks a  region  of  rich  coffee  kinds.  The  picturesque  town 
appeared,  —  a  street  with  narrow  pavements,  flooded  with 
water,  and  a  posada  with  tiled  roof  and  a  simple  veranda. 

The  inn  had  a  home-like  look,  with  its  sala,  aposentos,  and 
comedor. 

They  sought  the  comedor  (dining  room)  at  once,  where 
they  found  tortillas,  tostadas  (cakes),  sausages,  eggs,  and 
superb  coffee. 

About  the  patio,  or  open  court,  birds  hung  in  cages  amid 
baskets  of  flowers ;  but  there  was  no  quetzal  among  the 
feathered  beauties  that  gave  a  cheerful  atmosphere  to  the 
place. 

They  went  out  and  walked  up  the  street  to  the  casa  Muni- 
cipal, where  they  passed  through  an  arched  gateway  into  the 
plaza. 

The  scene  in  the  plaza  was  most  interesting.  Here 
were  gathered  hundreds  of  Indies  bartering  their  produce 
for  goods.  Here  were  displayed  granadcllas  (the  passion 
flower  fruit),  cacao,  blankets,  straw  hats,  and  palm-leaf  um- 
brellas. 


282  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

The  Indian  women  all  wore  skirts  of  blue  cotton,  and  their 
backs  were  covered  with  a  wealth  of  long  hair,  which,  with 
its  ornaments,  reached  nearly  to  the  ground. 

They  found  the  commandante  at  the  cabildo,  or  chapter 
house,  a  very  obliging  man,  who  could  speak  English. 

He  walked  about  the  town  with  them.  The  houses  were 
low  and  were  covered  with  stucco.  Their  windows  were  pro- 
tected by  iron  grills.  Leigh  peered  through  some  of  these 
in  the  hope  of  seeing  a  quetzal  among  the  hanging  flower 
baskets  and  caged  birds.     But  no  quetzal  appeared. 

They  entered  the  church,  which  was  simple  and  impressive, 
with  a  tiled  floor  and  curious  pictures. 

It  was  very  warm,  and  they  slept  in  hammocks  in  the 
hotel.  Strangely  enough,  their  guide  had  turned  out  their 
mules  to  wander  outside  of  the  town. 

The  night  in  a  mountain  town  in  Guatemala  may  bring  a 
sense  of  loneliness  and  remoteness  to  a  traveller  from  the 
East.  Here  one  is  surrounded  by  those  who  know  but  little 
of  the  wide,  wide  world.  The  mountains  are  filled  with  giant 
trees,  strange  birds  and  animals.  Everything  is  primitive  as 
in  the  early  days  of  the  creation. 

The  stars  hang  lonely  in  the  clear  sky.  When  the  moon 
comes  up,  her  face  seems  like  that  of  a  familiar  friend. 

The  morning  bursts  in  song.  The  forests  resound  with 
the  happy  voices  of  birds.  The  flowers  seem  to  be  ani- 
mated. 

The  day  marches  on,  a  fiery  tide  of  sun  ;  but  the  town  is 
still.  The  posada  does  not  wake.  The  morning  sleep  is 
sweet,  amid  the  coolness  of  the  air.  The  mozos  are  reluc- 
tant to  leave  their  hammocks  and  beds.     It  is  always  after- 


COBAN,    THE    CITY    OF    THE    QUETZAL.  283 

noon  or  to-morrow  here.  The  climate  takes  care  of  the  bodies 
of  the  people ;  the  sun,  as  of  old,  is  the  provident  father  to 
all. 

Leigh  arose  early  in  the  morning,  and  went  out  into  the 
silent  streets.  Nothing  but  the  birds  were  stirring.  The 
mountains  gleamed  above  the  town  like  tents  of  the  sun. 
There  had  been  light  rains,  and  the  waters  flowed  under  a 
bridge  through  the  gardens  of  flowers.  Palms  feathered  the 
air,  the  strawberries  were  in  bloom  in  the  gardens. 

Rut  to-day  people  were  on  their  feet  earlier  than  usual  — 
it  was  a  market  day. 

He  heard  a  cry  —  it  sounded  like  "Ocho!"  The  market 
people  were  coming  to  the  town,  men  on  mules,  and  with 
other  mules  bristling  with  produce  ;  women  in  blue  dresses 
and  streaming  head-dresses, — light-hearted,  happy  people 
read)'  for  barter  when  the  people  should  arise. 

The  church  doors  stood  open.  Mere  and  there  a  woman 
began  to  steal  out  of  the  unfastened  doors  of  the  houses,  and 
demurely  make  her  way  to  the  church  under  the  low  bell 
tower. 

Then  more  Indios  came,  and  the  market-place  or  plaza 
filled  with  trade  people.      The  town  was  waking. 

Leigh  went  into  the  inn,  and  had  eoffee  and  naranjas 
foranges),  fried  plantains,  and  frijolcs  ncgras.  He  was  the 
first  in  the  comedor. 

Captain  Frobisher  came  next. 

"This  is  to  be  my  bus)-  day,"  said  Leigh.  "To-day  I  am 
to  find  the  royal  (piet/.al." 

"We  don't  seem  to  find  any  on  the  table,"  said  the  cap- 
tain ;   "  but  I  suppose  that  the  woods  are  full  of  them.     The 


284  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

mountains  are  certainly  full  of  woods.  Wait  for  me  and  I 
will  go  with  you,  and  we  will  visit  the  markets  together. 
There  arc  many  curious  things  to  be  found  in  markets  like 
these  —  the  people,  for  instance." 

Leigh  waited  impatiently.  The  dining-room  was  nearly 
empty ;  how  could  people  be  so  unmindful  of  a  glorious 
morning  like  this  !  " 

At  last  Captain  Frobisher,  after  an  easy  breakfast,  with 
much  coffee,  seized  his  hat  and  cane  and  said,  "Varmoits! 
(let  us  go)." 

They  met  the  commandante  at  the  cabildo.  He  was  wash- 
ing his  dignity  outside  of  the  door,  in  an  easy,  lazy  way. 

"We  will  have  a  peppery  day,"  said  he,  after  the  usual 
many  salutations.  "  No  showers  ;  you  should  take  your  um- 
brellas, my  friends.  Strangers  should  never  expose  them- 
selves to  the  sun." 

"  Sehor,"  said  the  captain,  "  my  nephew  here  is  greatly  taken 
with  the  stories  that  he  has  heard  of  your  national  bird." 

"The  quetzal  —  the  paradise  trogon  —  peacock  trogon,  as 
some  call  them." 

"  Yes,  and  we  have  been  told  that  we  can  find  them  here 
in  the  market-places." 

"Yes,  yes,  that  is  so.  The  Indians  bring  them  down  from 
the  mountains  chiefly  from  the  forests  of  Alta  Vera  Paz." 

How  promising  the  name  of  the  home  of  the  royal  bird 
sounded  —  the  "height  of  the  true  peace,"  Alta  Vera 
Paz  ! 

"Can  we  find  them  in  the  market  to-day?"  asked  Captain 
Frobisher. 

"  Any  day,  always.     You  can  get  one  with  feathers  three 


COBAN,  THE  CITY  OF  THE  QUETZAL.         285 

feet  long  for  a  peso.  You  have  to  handle  them  very  care- 
fully." 

"  Would  we  have  any  difficulty  in  taking  one  home  to  the 
States  with  us  ?  "  asked  Leigh,  eagerly. 

"  None,  only  handle  it  carefully.  All  travellers  take 
quetzals  away  with  them.  They  say  that  the  plumes  are  the 
finest  in  the  world.  They  are  all  that  is  left  us  now  of 
the  ornaments  of  the  race  who  built  temples  as  fine  as 
those  of  the  Old  World.  I  mind  that  there  was  once  a 
continent  between  here  and  Egypt,  and  that  it  sunk,  don't 
you  ?  " 

"  I  have  heard  such  a  theory.  Is  the  quetzal  a  quiet 
bird  ?  "  asked  Leigh. 

"  Quiet,  nothing  is  more  quiet.  What,  do  you  mean  those 
sold  by  the  Indios?" 

"Yes;  they  do  not  break  their  feathers  in  carrying  them 
away  ? " 

"That  depends  on  you.  Of  course  they  will  not  break 
their  feathers.  No,  sir ;  they  are  not  magic  birds.  Break 
their  feathers  ?  No,  no  ;  the  days  are  gone  by  for  such  things 
as  those." 

How  strangely  the  mayor  was  talking. 

He  continued,  emptying  the  water  from  the  basin  on  the 
ground,  — 

"There  was  a  time  when  they  say  a  magician  ascended 
into  heaven  and  remained  there  seven  days,  and  then  came 
down  again,  and  told  what  he  had  seen.  Then  he  went  down 
to  hell,  and  rose  again  ;  but  the  quetzal  is  no  longer  a  miracle 
bird." 

What  did  the  man  mean  ? 


286  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  If  I  can  secure  a  quetzal  and  a  cage,  how  shall  I  take 
care  of  him  ?  " 

"Why,  boy,  it  won't  need  no  care;  it  will  take  care  of  itself, 
the  same  as  birds  on  hats.      It  is  that  kind  of  a  bird." 

"  What  may  I  give  it  to  eat,  may  I  ask  ?  I  am  a  stranger 
here." 

"That  you  are  indeed.      Feathers  don't  eat." 

"Does  it  not  live  on  fruit,  in  the  mountains,  may  I  ask  ?" 

"  Yes,  in  the  mountains,  but  not  in  the  markets.  You 
don't  understand  the  process." 

Leigh,  indeed,  did  not,  nor  what  the  commandante  meant 
by  the  process.     But  he  would  go  and  see. 

It  was  in  the  middle  of  the  forenoon  now.  The  sky  was 
clear  and  the  hills  were  dazzling. 

In  the  door  of  one  of  the  chapters  of  the  buildings  of  the 
plaza  sat  an  old  Indian  surrounded  with  birds.  Some  of  the 
parrots  were  not  caged;  they  seemed  to  think  that  they  could 
not  fly.     They  called  the  man  Roberto. 

Leigh  went  up  to  him.      Roberto's  face  beamed. 

"Parrots,  Senor  ? "  he  asked,  using  the  English  word  for 
birds  of  most  beautiful  plumage. 

"  No,  amigo,"  said  Leigh,  "the  quetzal — -  resplendens 
paradiso." 

The  Indian  rose  quickly.  He  turned  around  twice.  He 
opened  a  long  box,  like  a  treasure  chest. 

"  Si,  quetzal?  " 

"  Si,  amigo,  the  bird  royal." 

"The  bird  royal  ?  " 

He  lifted  a  cloud  of  glimmering  feathers  from  the  long 
box,  putting  it  over  his  finger,  and  holding  it  up  to  the  sun. 


COBAN,    THE    CITY    OF    THE    QUETZAL.  287 

"  The  quetzal  —  una  peso." 

The  yellow  beak  was  there,  the  carmine  feathers  on  the 
breast,  the  wing  coverts  of  metallic  lustres  and  lace-like 
edges,  the  long  tail  plumes,  the  royal  crest. 

"  Bueno,"  said  Roberto,  as  he  turned  the  shimmering  lustres 
in  his  hand. 

"  But  he  has  no  eyes,  no  body,  no  life ;  he  is  dead." 

"  Si,  Seiior." 

"  I  want  a  live  bird." 

"  No  hay,  Seiior." 

"  ATo  hay  !  "     What  did  the  man  mean  ? 

The  commandante  appeared. 

"  It  is  a  live  quetzal  that  I  want,  Seiior,"  explained  Leigh. 

"There  are  none  here." 

"  Do  they  never  have  live  quetzals  to  sell  in  Coban  ? " 
asked  Leigh. 

"  No,  no  ;  not  for  long  ;  the  birds  do  not  live  in  confinement. 
They  are  very  tender." 

Captain  Frobisher  stared  and  laughed.  Was  this  the  end 
of  the  long  search  for  the  North  American  paradise  bird  ? 

They  bought  six  beautiful  quetzals,  but  they  were  as  dead 
as  the  mummies  of  the  temples  that  were  sinking  into  the 
earth  in  this  region  of  a  lost  civilization  and  a  vanished   race. 

"  Mayor,"  said  Leigh,  "  I  would  travel  miles  to  see  one  of 
those  royal  birds  alive." 

"Go  with  the  Indians  into  the  Alta  Vera  Paz,"  said  the 
commandante.  "  You  will  be  safe,  if  I  send  a  guide  with 
you." 

He  added:  "  You  may  find  them  in  your  journey  higher 
up.      Look  out  ior  them." 


288  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

"  I  wish  to  hold  a  live  bird  in  my  hand,  if  I  had  to  let  him 
go  again,"  said  Leigh. 

"If  he  were  to  struggle  greatly,  he  would  tear  his  feathers 
and  would  die.  The  quetzal  is  made  of  the  sun,  the  fruits, 
and  the  air." 

Leigh  was  more  than  ever  desirous  of  seeing  the  royal 
bird  alive  in  his  native  trees. 


CHAPTER    XXXIX. 


THE    ROYAL    BIRD. 


EARLY  one  morning  a  hand  shook  Leigh's  hammock. 
"Wake  up,"  said  a  voice,  "I  have  something  strange 
to  show  you." 

Leigh  awoke.  The  hammock  was  swung  under  a  net  in 
a  long  veranda.  As  the  boy  looked  up,  he  saw  his  brother 
standing  beside  him.  lie  rubbed  his  eyes.  In  the  rising 
light  of  sunlight  rose  the  mountains  green  with  palms,  in 
which  the  birds  were  singing,  songs  in  reality  breaking  upon 
the  air.  The  tops  of  the  ornamental  trees  were  in  bloom, 
and  were  lighted  here  and  there  with  the  joyous  rustle  of  a 
bird's  wing.  The  thousands  of  oranges  in  some  near  trees 
shone  in  dewy  billows  of  green  leaves.  As  a  contrast  to 
these  bright  scenes,  black  buzzards  were  dropping  down 
from  the  high  trees  here  and  there,  very  lightly,  as  though 
their  legs  were  made  of  glass,  and  they  were  fearful  of  break- 
ing them  in  alighting. 

"Wake  up,  wake  up!"  said  Alonzo,  "and  look  out  into 
the  yard." 

Leigh  rose  up  in  the  hammock  and  looked  into  the  yard, 
which  was  filled  with  breadfruit  trees,  covered  with  tangled 
vines,  which  spread  over  the  trees  a  cloud  of  crimson  blooms. 

His  eyes  were  instantly  fixed  on  an  unexpected  and  unac- 
countable object.      It  was  the  form  of  a  tall   Indian,  thin  and 
c  2Sy 


29O  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

old,  standing  motionless,  as  if  patiently  waiting.  He  wore  a 
grass  garment,  had  a  single  green  plume  in  a  band  about  his 
head,  was  barefooted,  and  his  lower  limbs  looked  like  leather. 

He  stood  with  one  hand  resting  on  a  strange  cage  of  reeds, 
some  three  feet  high.  In  the  cage  was  a  broken  limb  of  a 
tree.     It  was  hollow. 

The  hollow  part  of  the  limb  had  two  openings,  and  out  of 
one  of  the  holes,  or  openings,  was  projected  the  head  of  a 
bird,  and  out  of  the  other  opening  the  tail  of  the  same  bird. 
So  much  Leigh  could  see  through  the  wicker  work. 

He  knew  the  Indian's  face  at  once,  and  his  heart  bounded, 
for  the  purpose  of  the  Indian's  coming  was  suddenly  clear 
to  him. 

Leigh  looked  into  the  Indian's  face  and  called,  — 

"Apula!" 

A  joy  as  from  the  heart  came  into  the  Indian's  face.  He 
stepped  forward  to  the  veranda,  lifting  the  tall,  broad  cage 
very  carefully  before  him. 

He  stood  there  in  silence  for  a  moment,  then  lifted  his 
hand.     On  it  gleamed  the  fire  opal. 

"Apula — fid!"  he  said,  "Apula  —  faithful." 

He  blew  a  reed  whistle  and  called  out  "  Nina !  " 

A  girl  of  some  fifteen  years  rose  up  among  the  bushes. 

"  Nina  Jiabla"  said  Apula,  "  habla  por  Apula." 

Nina  could  speak  Spanish,  and  Apula  had  brought  her 
here  to  talk  for  him.     She  was  his  daughter. 

The  girl  was  beautiful.  Leigh  had  rarely  seen  so  beauti- 
ful a  face. 

She  said  in  the  Spanish  of  the  country  :  — 

"  I  have  come  to  talk  with  you  for  father.     I  have  been  to 


THE    ROYAL    BIRD.  2()I 

the  English  school  on  the  coast.  I  live  with  the  people  of 
the  Mosquito  king.      I  know  the  Moravians  there." 

"  What  have  you  in  the  cage  ?  "  asked  Alonzo. 

"It  is  a  quetzal  —  two  trogons,  such  as  the  Aztecs  placed 
in  their  temples,  and  their  nest  taken  from  the  tree  !  " 

"Why  did  you  bring  the  nest  with  the  cage?"  asked 
Alonzo. 

"  It  is  the  royal  bird  ;  it  is  very  tender  ;  if  he  is  not  happy, 
his  heart  break,  and  he  dies.  Mis  feathers  are  very  ten- 
der ;  they  fall  out  if  he  is  handled  ;  they  fall  out  if  he  is 
vexed  or  scared.  He  loves  his  mate  and  his  nest.  lie  no 
lives  if  he  is  made  a  captive  ;  he  no  lives  unless  he  is 
happy.  He  was  made  to  be  a  happy  bird.  He  is  the  bird 
of  the  sun." 

"  Will  he  not  live  ?  "  asked   Alonzo. 

"Yes,  he  will  live;    but  another  would  not  live." 

"  Why  will  he  live  and  not  another?  "  asked  Alonzo. 

"  He  was  brought  up  from  a  little  bird  in  the  trees  of  the 
yard.  He  was  fed  from  the  hand  of  the  mistress  of  the 
cabin.  He  is  happy  with  people  who  treat  him  kind]}'.  He 
will  live  while  he  is  happy.  He  has  his  mate  and  his  nest. 
You  can  carry  him  away,  if  you  treat  him  kindly.  He  will 
live  ;   another  would  die." 

Apula  opened  the  tall  cage,  and  took  from  it  the  hollow 
limb  of  the  tree.  On  it  were  two  trogons,  the  superb  bird  of 
magic  and  mystery,  and  his  Quaker-like  wile. 

Apula  put  out  his  hand  to  the  royal  trogon.  The  bird, 
carrying  his  trailing  plumage  very  carefully,  stepped  upon  it. 
Apula  held  him  up  to  the  sunlight  proudly  and  said, — 

"  The  quetzal  !   vera  -     vera       vera  !  " 


2Q2  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

How  splendid  the  bird  looked,  with  its  emerald  lustres  and 
its  ruby  heart,  and  trail  of  curious  plumes,  like  the  end  of  a 
rainbow  !  What  wonder  that  the  dead  nation  when  it  lived  in 
its  glory  thought  that  this  creature  was  the  bird  of  the  gods  ! 
What  wonder  that  they  made  it  the  penalty  of  death  to 
touch  its  sun-illumined  plumes  !  What  wonder  that  they 
placed  it  on  their  majestic  altars,  and  inscribed  it  on  the 
forests  of  monuments  that  promised  a  paradise  and  immor- 
tality to  the  dead  !  And  of  all  the  glory  and  pomp  of  these 
nations,  of  all  their  worship  of  forgotten  gods,  of  all  of  the 
kings  who  led  armies  to  victory  and  defeat,  who  rose  and 
fell,  and  who  left  their  records  on  monoliths  that  none  can 
now  read,  this  bird  alone  survives  among  living  emblems. 

Apula  next  took  out  the  hollow  section  of  the  tree  which 
he  had  cut  out  with  his  machete.  He  set  it  down  on  the  ver- 
anda and  loosed  the  quetzal  from  his  arm.  The  royal  bird 
entered  the  hollow  nest  with  the  two  openings,  while  his 
mate  watched  him  with  seeming  pride  without  any  fear  of 
strangers.  She  had  never  known  harm  ;  she  probably  had 
no  sense  that  anything  could  harm  her,  or  do  her  otherwise 
than  good. 

Her  superb  lord  gathered  up  his  feathers  to  enter  the  nest. 
How  carefully  he  did  this,  as  though  he  knew  that  every 
plume  was  a  gem,  and  that  it  was  the  purpose  of  his  rare 
existence  to  guard  them!  He  entered  the  hollow  with  a 
really  royal  movement,  and  stood  on  the  bark  between  the 
two  openings  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  touch  a  feather.  Then 
Leigh  knew  what  Apula  had  meant  when  he  made  the  mys- 
terious movements  in  trying  to  describe  in  sign  language  the 
habits  of  the  royal  bird. 


THE    ROYAL    BIRD.  293 

Leigh's  heart  was  thrilled  when  he  saw  that  he  had  been 
made  the  master  of  such  a  mystery,  and  that  he,  probably 
the  first  among  American  naturalists,  would  be  able  to  take 
back  to  the  States  a  royal  trogon,  —  a  true  bird  of  the  temples 
of  the  gods,  of  the  races  of  mystery. 

His  admiration  for  the  conduct  of  the  Indian  could  not  be 
expressed. 

What  should  he  say  to  him  ? 

Me  would  offer  him  money.  Me  went  into  the  cabin,  and 
brought  out  his  purse  that  contained  American  gold,  and 
poured  it  on  a  bench  beside  the  trogon. 

Me  began  to  count  out  some  ten  pieces,  and  he  held  them 
out  to  Apula. 

"  SVa,  ua,"  said  the  Indian,  in  an  accent  of  his  race.  Me 
then  spoke  to  Nina. 

"  Father  desires  no  reward,"  said  the  girl.  "  Me  says  that 
his  reward  is  in  your  heart  ;  that  you  paid  him  well  in  the 
love  that  prompted  you  to  give  him  the  ring." 

The  Indian  moved  away,  facing  Leigh  and  Alonzo  as  he 
did  so.  lie  moved  back  to  the  white  adobe  wall,  where  was 
a  gate.  Me  stopped  at  the  gate,  lifted  his  withered  arm, 
spread  open  his  hand  so  that  the  ring  and  the  topaz  shone  in 
the  sun. 

"  Adios  !  ad/os  /  "  he  exclaimed.  "  Vaya  listed  con  Dios 
(Go  thy  way  with  God,  or,  Go  with  you  God). 

The  two  Indians  turned  away.  Leigh  never  saw  them 
again. 

In  the  orchid  house  with  the  captive  condor  and  some 
wonderful  blue-front  parrots  was  placed,  a  tew  weeks  later,  a 
trogon,  a  true  bird  of  the   golden  temples  of  nature,  the  sun 


2Q4  LOST    IN    NICARAGUA. 

and  stars  ;  and  the  bird  while  it  lived  recalled  not  only  a 
strange  and  delightful  journey  through  the  lands  of  the 
future,  and  that  a  persevering  will  may  bring  about  an 
almost  impossible  purpose,  but  that  he  who  wins  the  heart  of 
a  man,  be  that  man  a  savage,  may  have  the  choicest  treas- 
ures that  the  human  mind  can  secure. 

Our  travellers  had  had  glimpses  of  South  and  Central  Amer- 
ica, the  new  lands  of  opportunity,  but  glimpses  only.  The 
temperate  regions  of  the  Andes,  of  both  South  and  Central 
America,  await  the  need  of  the  growing  populations  of  the 
world,  and  history  is  to  write  her  great  pages  there.  There 
art  is  to  rise,  and  poets  are  to  sing,  and  music  awaken  new 
chords.  But  it  is  only  the  temperate  regions  that  can  make 
homes  for  the  Anglo-Saxon  race.  The  Latin  race  must  form 
the  life  of  the  semi-tropics,  and  the  ancient  races  and  the 
tribes  of  the  Incas  must  come  again,  and  be  schooled  in  the 
civilized  arts  of  the  world.  With  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  in 
the  temperate  zones  and  altitudes  in  the  Andes;  a  new  Latin 
race  in  Argentina  and  the  South  ;  the  Indian  races  of  old, 
civilized,  Christianized,  and  educated  in  the  Peruvian  and 
Bolivian  highlands  and  the  Brazils  —  what  may  we  not  rea- 
sonably expect  of  the  republics  of  the  South  under  the  fiery 
arch  of  the  equator,  the  Southern  Cross,  and  the  shadows  of 
the  eternal  peaks  of  the  palms  ! 


THE    END. 


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ocean  steamship.  His  sea  adventures  aie  mostly  on  shore;  but  whether  he  is  cleaning 
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Nicaraguan  forests  in  search  of  a  quetzal,  or  the  royal  bird  of  the  Aztecs,  falls  into  an 
am  ii-nt  idol  cue.  and  is  rescued  in  a  remarkable  way  by  an  old  Mosquito  Indian.  The 
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history  of  the  projei  ts  for  the  canal,  and  fatts  about  Central  America,  and  a  part  of  it 
was  written  in  Costa  Kit  ,\.      It  enters  a  new  held. 

The  set  of  four  volumes  in  a  box,  $6.00. 


£ 


CANTER  DECK     AND      EOK'SLE.      By    Molly 

Ki.i.iott   Si  AWKi.i..      272  pp.      Cloth,  $1.25. 

Mi  -■■   Seawell  has  done  a  notable  work  for  the  young  people  of  our  country  in  her 
excellent    stone     of    naval    exploits.     They   are   of    "the   kind  that  causes  the  reader,  no 

matter  whether   young   Id,  to  thrill  with  pride  and  pati  iolii  in  at  the  deeds  of  daring 

of  the  heroes  of  our  navy. 


//'.  //.   Wilde  C-  Co..  Boston  and  Chicago. 

3 


W.  A.   Wilde  &  Co.,  Publishers. 


Fighting  for  the  Flag  Series. 

By  Chas.  Ledyard  Norton. 


J 


4CK  BENSON'S  LOG ;  or,  Afloat  with  the  Flag  in 
'61.     281pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

An  unusually  interesting  historical  story,  and  one  that  will  arouse  the  loyal  impulses 
of  every  American  boy  and  girl.  The  story  is  distinctly  superior  to  anything  ever 
attempted  along  this  line  before.  —  The  Independent. 

A  story  that  will  arouse  the  loyal  impulses  of  every  American  boy  and  girl.  —  The 
Press. 


A 


MEDAL   OF  HONOR  MAN;  or,  Cruising  Among 
Blockade  Runners.     280  pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

A  bright,  breezv  sequel  to  "  Jack  Benson's  Log."'     The  book  has  unusual  literary 
excellence.  —  1'lie  Book  Buyer,  Neiv  York. 

A  stirring  story  for  boys.  —  The  Journal,  Indianapolis. 


M 


IDSHJPMAN  JACK.     290  pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 


Jack  is  a  delightful  hero,  and  the  author  has  made  his  experiences  and  ad- 
ventures seem  very  real.  —  Congregationalist. 
It  is  true  historically  and  full  of  exciting  war  scenes  and  adventures.  —  Outlook. 
A  stirring  story  of  naval  service  in  the  Confederate  waters  during  the  late  war. — 
Presbyterian. 

The  set  of  three  volumes  in  a  box,  $3.75. 


A 


GIRL   OF   '/6.    By  Amy  E.   Blanchard.    331    pp. 

Cloth,  $1.50. 

"A  Girl  of  '70''  lays  its  scene  in  and  around  Boston  where  the  principal  events  of 
the  early  period  of  the  Revolution  were  enacted.  Elizabeth  Mall,  the  heroine,  is  the 
daughter  of  a  patriot  who  is  active  in  the  defense  of  his  country.  The  story  opens  with 
a  scene  in  Charlestown,  where  Elizabeth  Hall  and  her  parents  live.  The  emptying  of 
the  tea  in  Boston  Harbor  is  the  means  of  giving  the  little  girl  her  first  strong  impression 
as  to  the  seriousness  of  her  father's  opinions,  and  causes  a  quarrel  between  herself  and 
her  schoolmate  and  playfellow,  Amos  Dwight. 


A 


SOLDIER    OF   THE   LEGION     By  Chas.  Led- 
yard Norton.     300  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

Two  boys,  a  Carolinian  and  a  Virginian,  born  a  few  years  apart  during  the  last  half 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  afford  the  groundwork  for  the  incidents  of  this  tale. 

The  younger  of  the  two  was  William  Henry  Harrison,  sometime  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  elder,  his  companion  and  faithful  attendant  through  life,  was 
Carolinus  Bassett,  Sergeant  of  the  old  first  Infantry,  and  in  an  irregular  sort  of  a  way 
Captain  of  Virginian  Horse.  He  it  is  who  tells  the  story  a  few  years  after  President 
Harrison's  death,  his  granddaughter  acting  as  critic  and  amanuensis. 

The  story  has  to  do  with  the-  early  days  of  the  Republic,  when  the  great,  wild,  un- 
known West  was  beset  by  dangers  on  every  hand,  and  the  Government  at  Washington 
was  at  its  wits' end  to  provide  ways  and  means  to  meet  the  perplexing  problems  of 
national  existence. 


//'.  A.   Wilde  &->  Co.,  Boston  and  Chicago. 


IV.  A.  Wilde  &■  Co.,  Publishers. 


rHE  ORCUTT  GIRLS;  or,  One  Term  at  the  Academy. 
By  Charlotte  M.  Vaile.     316  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

A  well-told  story  of  school  life  which  will  interest  its  readers  deeply,  and  hold 
before  them  a  high  standard  of  living.  The  heroines  are  charming  girls  and  their 
adventures  are  described  in  an  entertaining  way.  —  Pilgrim  Teacher. 

Mrs.  Vaile  gives  us  a  story  here  which  will  become  famous  as  a  description  of  a 
phase  of  New  England  educational  history  which  has  now  become  a  thing  of  the  past, 
with  an  exception  here  and  there.  —  Boston   Transcript. 


s 


UE  ORCUTT.     A  Sequel  to  "The  Orcutt  Girls."     By 

Charlotte  M.   Vaile.     330  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

It  is  a  charming  story  from  beginning  to  end  and  is  written  in  that  easy  flowing 
style  which  characterizes  the  best  stories  of  our  best  writers.  —  Christian  Work. 

It  is  wholly  ;i  piece  of  good  fortune  for  young  folks  that  brings  this  book  to  market 
in  such  ample  season  for  the  selection  of  holiday  gifts.  — Dernier  Republican. 

The  story  teaches  a  good  moral  without  any  preaching,  in  tact  it  is  as  good  in  a  way 
as  Miss  Alcott's  books,  which  is  high  but  deserved  praise. —  Chronicle. 

rHE  M.  JM.  C.  A  Story  of  the  Great  Rockies.  Bv 
Charlotte  M.  Vaile.     232  pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

The  pluck  of  the  little  school  teacher,  struggling  against  adverse  circumstances,  to 
hold  for  her  friend  the  promising  claim,  which  he  has  secured  after  years  of  misfortune 
in  other  ventures,  is  well  brought  out.  The  almost  resistless  bad  luck  which  has  made 
"  Old  Hopefull's''  nickname  a  hollow  mockery  still  followed  him  when  a  fortune  was 
almost  within  his  grasp.  The  little  school  teacher  was.  however,  a  new  element  in  "  <  )ld 
Hopefull's  "  experience,  and  the  result,  as  the  story  shows,  was  most  satisfactory. 

r  HE  ROMANCE  OE DISCOVERY ;  or,  a  'Thousand 
Years  of  Exploration,  etc.  By  William  Elliot  Grifkis. 
305  pp.      Cloth,  $1.50. 

It  is  a  book  of  profit  and  interest  involving  a  variety  of  correlated  instances  and 
influences  which  impart  the  flavor  of  the  unexpected.  —  Philadelphia  Presbyterian. 

An  intensely  interesting  narrative  following  well-authenticated  history.        Telescope. 

Hoys  will  read  it  for  the  romance  in  it  and  be  delighted,  and  when  they  get  through, 
behold  ;    they  have  read  a  history  of  America.  —  Aivakener. 

rHE  ROMANCE  OF  AMERICAN  COLONIZA- 
T/ON ;  or,  How  the  Foundations  of  Our  Country  Were  Laid. 
By   William   Klliot  Grikfis.     295  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

To  this  continent,  across  a  great  ocean,  came  two  distinct  streams  of  humanity 
and  two  rival  civilizations,  the  one  Latin,  led  and  typified  by  the  Spanish,  with 
Portugese  and  French  also,  and  the  other  Germanic,  or  Anglo-Saxon,  led  and  typified 
by  the  Knglish  and  reinforced  by  Dutch,  German,  and  liritish  people. 

/I  SON  OF  77/ T  REVOLUTION.  An  Historical 
^/l.      Novel  of  tin:  Days  of  Aaron  Burr.      By   Klhridoe  S.    Brooks. 

301  pp.      ( 'loth,  Si. 50. 

The  story  of  Tom  Edwards,  adventurer,  as  it  is  connected  with  Aaron  I'.urr,  is 
in  every  way  faithful  to  the  facts  ol  history.  As  the  story  progresses  the  reader  will 
wonder  where  the  line  between  fact  and  fiction  is  to  be  drawn.  Among  the  characters 
that  figure  in  it  are  President  Jefferson,  Gen  Vndrew  lackson,  General  Wilkinson, 
and   many   other  prominent   government  and   army  officials. 


IV.  A.   Wilde  6^  Co.,  IJoslon  and  Chiea^ 

5 


W.  A.   Wilde  6-  Co.,  Publishers. 


M 


A 


1LVERN,  A    NEIGHBORHOOD   STORY.     By 
Ki.i.kn   Douglas  Deland.     341  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

Her  descriptions  of  hoys  and  girls  are  so  true,  and  her  knowledge  of  their  ways  is 
so  accurate,  that  one  must  feel  an  admiration  for  her  complete  mastery  of  her  chosen 
field.  —  The  A  rgus,  Albany. 

Miss  Deland  was  accorded  a  place  with  Louisa  M.  Alcott  and  Nora  Perry  as  a 
successful  writer  of  books  for  girls.     We  think  this  praise  none  too  high.  —  The  Post. 

SUCCESSFUL    VENTURE.     By  Ellen    Douglas 
Deland.     340  pp.     Cloth,  $1.50. 

One  of  the  many  successful  books  that  have  come  from  her  pen,  which  is  certainly 
the  very  best.  —  Boston  Herald. 

It  is  a  good  piece  of  work  and  its  blending  of  good  sense  and  entertainment  will  be 
appreciated.  —  Congregationalist. 

4TRINA.      By   Ellen    Douglas    Deland.      340  pp. 

Cloth,  $1.50. 

"  Katrina  "'  is  the  story  of  a  girl  who  was  brought  up  by  an  aunt  in  a  remote  village 
of  Vermont.  Her  life  is  somewhat  lonely  until  a  family  from  New  York  come  there  to 
board  during  the  summer.  Katrma*s  aunt,  who  is  a  reserved  woman,  has  told  her  little 
of  her  antecedents,  and  she  supposes  that  she  has  no  other  relatives.  Her  New  York 
friends  grow  very  fond  of  her  and  finally  persuade  her  to  visit  them  during  the  winter. 
There  new  pleasures  and  new  temptations  present  themselves,  and  Katrina's  character 
develops  through  them  to  new  strength. 

BOVE  THE  RANGE.     By  Theodora  R.  Jenness. 

332  pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

The  quaintness  of  the  characters  described  will  be  sure  to  make  the  story  very  pop- 
ular. —  Book  Xeivs.  Philadelphia. 

A  book  of  much  interest  and  novelty.  —  The  Book  Buyer,  New  York. 


K 


A 


B 


F 


IG  CYJTiESS.     By  Kirk  Munroe.     164  pp.    Cloth, 

$1.00. 

If  there  is  a  man  who  understands  writing  a  story  for  boys  better  than  another,  it  is 
Kirk  Munroe.  — Springfield  Republican. 

A  capital  writer  of  boys'  stories  is  Mr.  Kirk  Munroe.  —  Outlook. 

OREMAN  JENNIE.    By  Amos  R.  Wells.    A  Young 

Woman  of  Business.     26S  pp.      Cloth,  $1.25. 


It  is  a  delightful  story.  —  The  Advance.  Chicago. 

It  is  full  of  action.  —  The  Standard,  Chicago. 

A  story  of  decided  merit.  —  The  Epivorth  Herald,  Chicago. 


M 


YSTERIOUS    VOYAGE     OF   THE    DAFHNE. 

By  Lieut.  H.   P.   Whitmarsii.     305  pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

One  of  the  best  collections  of  short  stories  for  boys  and  girls  that  has  been  pub- 
lished in  recent  years  Such  writers  as  Hezekiah  Butteruorth,  Wm.O,  Stoddard,  and 
Jane  ().  Austin  have  contributed  characteristic  stories  which  add  greatly  to  the  general 
interest  of  the  book. 


IV.  A.   Wilde  e~  Co.,  Huston  and  Chicago. 


IV.  A.  Wilde  &  Co.,  Publishers. 


piI/JJP  LEICESTER.      By  Jessie  E.  Wright.     264 

±        pp.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

The  book  ought  to  make  any  reader  thankful  for  a  good  home,  and  thoughtful  for 
the  homeless  and  neglected.  —  Golden  Rule. 

The  story  is  intensely  interesting.  —  Christian  Inquirer. 

f>AE'Ar  THISTLETOP.     By  Sophie  Swett.     282  pp. 

W     Cloth,  $1.25. 

Sophie  Swett  knows  how  to  please  young  folks  as  well  as  old  ;  for  both  she  writes 
simple,  unaffected,  cheerful  stories  with  a  judicious  mingling  of  humor  and  plot.  Such 
a  story  is  "  Cap'n  Thistletop." —  The  Outlook. 

T  ADY  BETTY'S  TWINS.     By  E.  M.  Waterworth. 

J. J     117  pp.      With  12  illustrations.     75  cents. 

The  story  of  a  little  boy  and  girl  who  did  not  know  the  meaning  of  the  word 
"obedience.''     They  learned  the  lesson,  however,  after  some  trying  experiences. 

r'HE  MOONSTONE  RING.     By  Jennie  Chappell. 
iicSpp.      With  6  illustrations.     75  cents. 

A  home  story  with  the  true  ring  to  it.  The  happenings  of  the  story  ate  somewhat 
out  of  the  usual  run  of  events. 

r'HE  BEACON  LIGHT  SER/ES.     Edited  by  Nat- 
alie L.    Rick.      5   vols.      Fully  Illustrated.     The  Set,  $2.50. 

The  stories  contained  in  this  set  of  books  are  all  by  well-known  writers,  carefully 
selected  and  edited,  and  they  cannot,  therefore,  tail  to  be  both  helpful  and  instructive. 

r'LLE    ALLAN    LOOKS.       Edited     by     Miss     Lucy 
Whkklock.      10  vols.     Over    400    illustrations.     The    set    in    a 
box,  52. 50. 
One  of  the  best  and  most  attractive   sets  of  books   for   little   folks   ever   published. 
They  are  full  of  bright  and  pleasing  illustrations  and  charming  little  stories  just  adapted 
to  young  children. 

rlM  MARJORIE    BOOTS.      Kdited    by   Miss    Lucy 
WlIEELOCK.     6  vols.      Over  200  illustrations.      The  set,  Si  .50. 

A  very  attractive  set  of   books  for  the  little  folks,  full  of  pictures  and  good  stories. 

r\0TS  LIBRARY.     Kdited  by  Miss  Lucy  Whkklock. 

JS      10  vols.     Over  400  illustrations.     The  set,  $2.50. 

In  every   way  a   most   valuable  set   of  books  for  the  little  people.      .Miss   Wheelock 

possesses  rare  skill  in  interesting  and  entertaining  the  little  ones. 

IV.  A.  Wilde  c--  Co.,  Boston  mid  Chicago. 

7 


W.  A.  Wilde  &->  Co.,  Publishers. 


pELOUBETS  SELECT  NOTES.     By  F.  N.  Pei.ou- 
JT      bet,  D.  D.,  and  M.  A.  Peloubet.     A  Commentary  on  the  Inter- 
national Sunday-school  Lessons.  Illustrated.  340  pp.  Cloth,  $1.25. 

This  commentary  is  the  one  book  every  teacher  must  have  in  order  to  do  the  best 
work.  It  interprets  the  Scripture,  illustrates  the  truths,  and  by  striking  comments  con- 
vinces the  mind. 

It  is  comprehensive,  and  yet  not  verbose,  and  furnishes  winnowed  material  in  the 
most  attractive  and  yet  convincing  form  from  both  spiritual  and  practical  standpoints. 
Accurate  colored  maps  and  profuse  original  illustrations  illuminate  the  text,  and  create  an 
intelligent  and  instructive  view  of  the  subject  matter. 

Teachers  are  invited  to  send  for  sample  pages  of  "  Select  Notes." 

JlfAYS  OF  WORKING;  or,  Helpful  Hints  to  Sunday- 
rr         school  Workers  of  all  Kinds.     By  Rev.  A.  F.   Schauffler, 
D.  D.     23S  pp.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

A  really  helpful  manual  for  Sunday-school  workers.  —  The  Sunday-school  Times. 

It  unlocks  the  door  to  the  treasure-house  of  Sunday-school  success.  —  F.  N. 
Peloubet,  D.  D. 

The  best  all-around  book  for  a  Sunday-school  worker  I  know  of.  —  Marion  Law- 
rence, Secretary  Ohio  State  S.  S.  Association. 

This  book  absolutely  covers  every  phase  of  Sunday-school  work  in  a  clear,  instruc- 
tive manner,  and  cannot  fail  to  be  of  marked  benefit  to  every  worker.  Send  for  sample 
pages. 


s 


FECIAL  SONGS  AND  SER  VICES  for  Primary  and 

Intermediate  Classes.     Compiled  by  Mrs.  M.  G.  Kennedy.     160 
pp.     Price,  45  cents.     $40.00  per  hundred. 

The  book  contains  Exercises  for  Christmas,  Easter,  Children's  Day,  Harvest,  etc.; 
Lessons  on  Lord's  Prayer,  Commandments,  Hooks'  of  the  I'.ible,  Missions,  and  many 
other  subjects.  Adapted  to  Primary  and  Intermediate  Classes,  Junior  Endeavor 
Societies,  etc. 

It  has  ninety  pages  of  new,  bright  music  for  all  occasions,  including  a  large  number 
of  Motion  Songs  that  are  now  so  popular.  We  feel  sure  the  book  will  prove  instruc- 
tive, interesting,  and  entertaining.  It  is  printed  on  heavy  paper,  bound  in  board  covers. 
Sample  pages  sent  on  application. 

<rr*HE  PALM  BRANCH:  or,  the  Gospel  in  Song.     By 
_Z        Mrs.  J.  A.  Hodge.     112   pp.     Price,   35    cents   each;   $30.00 
per  hundred  copies. 

A  new  hymn  book  for  little  children  in  the  Sunday  school  and  home.  Its  object  is 
to  call  fortli  the  iove  of  the  children  to  Christ,  by  teaching  them  the  truths  concerning 
Christ,  and  their  relation  to  Him.  The  language  is  therefore  simple,  within  their  com- 
prehension. The  music  has  been  carefully  selected  ,from  good  composers,  of  a  high 
order,  and  well  adapted  to  the  voices  of  children.  Another  peculiarity  of  the  book 
is  that  it  is  beautifully  illustrated  with  seven  full-page  pictures. 


s 


UNDA  Y- SCHOOL  PICTURES.  Illustrating  the  In- 
ternational Sunday-School  Lessons.  A  set  of  Sixteen  Pictures 
for  each  Quarter. 

Eacli  picture  is  printed  on  7x9  inch  heavy  card,  and  the  set  enclosed  in  a  neat  port- 
folio, costing  only  35  cents  in  heavy  manila,  or  50  cents  in  cloth.     Circular  free. 


W.  A.    Wilde  6°  Co.,  Boston  and  Chicago. 
8 


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from  whlchjn^0^^ 


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